The Tale Of Two Rabbits
by Teh Trickster
Summary: Momiji travels to South Korea to escape from his family. Yet, he lands into even more trouble, when he upsets the head of another powerful clan.
1. Gaia

The Tale Of Two Rabbits

Chapter 1

Gaia loved music. Her companion, Quan, did not really care about music, but she still accompanied her anyway, probably because she didn't want to sit alone at home. They were both cousins, and they came from a very influential family, and a very dark secret.

"Wow, they must be really talented if they are actually invited here to play," Quan observed.

"Yeah," Gaia agreed. Only the most talented classical musicians were invited to play here. She opened her handbag and pulled out a programme, scanning it quickly. "It says here that one of the main performances will be by a famous orchestra from Japan," She couldn't help grinning. "I heard they're really good, can't wait to hear them!"

"Nobody would be able to tell the difference if they were good or bad anyway," Quan muttered.

Gaia couldn't help frowning. Normally, she was a cheerful and spontaneous young woman, but she hated having her spirits pulled down by others.

Quan glanced over at her. "Just kidding," she said quickly. "Wow, didn't know you knew how to frown."

"Besides, I'm a music teacher. I should be able to, right?" Gaia smiled, she never stayed angry for long. Someone, she couldn't remember who it was, once likened her to a rabbit. Her smile turned sad. It was one thing to be likened to a rabbit; it was another to actually . . .

Suddenly, Quan grabbed her and pulled her away. Gaia was so shocked that she squeaked and dropped her handbag. Everything spilled out. She glanced up, and realised that if Quan hadn't pulled her away, she would have walked straight into the young man in front of her.

The young man heard her squeak and spun around. He looked at them, then looked down at the stuff on the floor. "Oops, I'm so sorry," he said in perfect English, "I'll pick everything up." He quickly bent and started picking up her stuff, placing them neatly in her handbag.

Gaia watched him as he worked. He was of normal height, quite thin, and had wavy blond hair. He's cute, she thought, then wondered where that came from. She couldn't afford to fall in love, it would hurt all the more if he knew she couldn't be hugged, and yet, that was the one thing she wanted all her life.

"Here," he said, handing her the handbag. Gaia almost jumped, she had been lost in her thoughts, she barely noticed that he had finished. Her cheeks flushed, she hopped that he hadn't seen her staring at him.

"Thanks," she finally stuttered. Then, "You really didn't have to."

"It's okay," he replied. "You're here for the performance?"

"Yes," Gaia replied. She tried to say something else, but she felt tongue-tied. She glanced up at his eyes, and realised that despite his cheerful demeanour, his eyes held a quiet sadness in them.

Her stare made him feel uncomfortable. He glanced at his watch, stuttered something about being late, and quickly took off.

Quan gently nudged Gaia. "You okay?" she asked quietly, her dark eyes full of concern.

"I'm fine," Gaia said quickly. Then, "Who is he?"

Quan shrugged. "Just try to forget about him, okay? We really cannot afford to fall in love. Imagine what would happen if he tried to hug us? We'll have to get Mei to . . ."

"Don't say it, I already know," Gaia whispered. "I just wish . . . or forget it. It's just wishful dreaming. Nothing will come out of it." She turned and slowly climbed up the concert hall steps, her mood already spoilt.

Quan sighed and looked after her sadly, before following her.


	2. Momiji

Hi! Second chapter already! Well . . . hope you guys like it! Review, okay? Thanks in advance!

The Tale of Two Rabbits

Chapter 2

Momiji had no idea where he was going. All he wanted to do was to run away and hide, hide like a rabbit in a burrow, away from everything. Unfortunately for him, though he could run away from the two women he saw just now, he couldn't run from his thoughts. They ranged far and wide, and they made him nervous.

Finally, he realised that he was just outside the male toilet, so he slipped in and went to stand in front of the mirror. For all that this concert hall was supposed to be the most prestigious in the whole of Seoul, the toilets were surprisingly plain. Not that he minded of course, he never felt comfortable around finery anyway.

He had changed a lot. He had jumped from that happy-go-lucky 16 year old to a more serious, quiet man who could still smile, though not as much. He had no idea why, he had not suffered much, certainly not as much as Kyo had, but yet . . .

He wasn't exactly sure when he changed into someone far more serious and sad, or maybe it was because of that something which had happened a few years ago, something he didn't even want to think off, and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't seem to forget it. That had probably been the thing that had changed him.

After the curse ended, he had nowhere to go. He couldn't stay in the Sohma main compound; the place had too many memories for him. Mainly bad, though there was still some good. He couldn't stay with his sister, Momo, but she was staying with her parents and he couldn't afford to stay with them, it would only traumatise his mother.

He couldn't stay with his cousins either. They were all around his age, but were married and had kids. He wasn't married yet; he hadn't found someone he wanted to share his life with yet. Of course, it would be possible, just not yet, no matter how much he wanted it to be now. If even the Cat could get married, certainly he could, right?

Finally, he decided to go into music. He had already studied in a music college and had a degree in performance arts. Plus, he was a star violinist. Performance groups practically tried to snatch at him the moment he graduated. Finally, he chose to join the certain group he was in now, mainly so he could travel around the world. He certainly was happy when it came to music, but for the other aspects of his life, he just felt empty. A void. Null.

Suddenly, his thoughts went to the two women he saw a few moments ago. Or precisely the woman who dropped her bag and he had bent to pick it up. She had seemed so embarrassed, it was cute. In a way, she kind of reminded him of Tohru, except that she had a sad look in her eyes. Her hair was the same colour as his, and she certainly didn't look Korean. In fact, she looked English.

Her dress sense was quite mature as well, kind of like a young lady, with a pink cardigan over a white blouse and an ankle length dark blue skirt.

Her friend did look Korean though. She reminded him of Rin. Their hair length and dress sense was certainly the same. In fact, she didn't look like someone who would come to a classical concert.

One thing was certain – he certainly wanted to see the blond girl again. He had no idea why, he just wanted to. Maybe after his performance he could sneak out and try to locate her. Hopefully she would not leave so soon . . .

"Oi, Sohma!" someone barged into the toilet and looked around. "There you are!"

Momiji jumped and spun around. He relaxed – it was only his section leader. He was about five years Momiji's senior, but many of his section thought Momiji was more talented. However, he was a very good section leader, very passionate about his section, making sure they were well taken care off, like an older brother. People automatically trusted and warmed up to him. "Hi," he answered, rather sheepishly. "Um . . ."

"Hurry up!" His section leader demanded. "It's time for warm-ups . . ."

"Coming," Momiji replied. He glanced once at the mirror, to make sure that he looked presentable, before following his section leader out of the toilet and into the concert hall itself.

He couldn't wait to play, music was his life, and it healed him in places where nothing else could.


	3. Music

Hi! Third chapter already! Sorry to keep you guys waiting! Yup, bunnies rule the world! Besides cats, that is. I've got two cats at home, and they're the qutest things in the world! Yup yup! Please review okay? Constructive critisms wanted.

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Chapter 3

The two women briskly walked into the hall and Gaia gave the man at the door their tickets. He tore off half the tickets and handed it back to them. Then, they proceeded to find their seats. They were fifteen minutes early, and only half the seats were filled.

"I told you we should come early," Gaia remarked, "It'll be easier to find seats."

"Yeah, I know, you've been proven correct," Quan grumbled. "Now will you stop gloating?" She took out a book to read, to wait for the concert to start.

Gaia closed her eyes and relaxed.

Neither of them mentioned anything about the young man they had bumped into earlier.

When the lights dimmed, Quan nudged Gaia, who had managed to fall asleep. "Wake up, sleepy head, they're starting!"

Gaia quickly woke up, and both sat quietly as the music played. Gaia closed her eyes and listened to the music. It was a beautiful, soaring piece, and she could almost imagine herself flying through the clouds, feeling the cool breeze on her skin. Music always had that effect on her, was it any wonder that she played and listened to music day and night?

She snuggled further into her seat. She certainly was happy teaching music, it was the one thing she had wanted to do all her life. It had taken a lot to convince the head of the family to let her study music – he thought music was a waste of time. She doubted that he would actually have let her, if it weren't for Quan. Quan was a good friend, someone she could totally depend on. It was thanks to her that now; she was highly regarded as one of the best piano teachers in the city.

On the other hand, music also let her forget about that deep, dark secret her family was cursed by. At least while it lasted.

She opened her eyes and scanned the musicians. They were deeply engrossed in their music, and they seemed to be really enjoying themselves. Suddenly, she gave a start. There, playing in the violin section was the young man she had bumped into! Her heart skipped a beat. He was a musician too! Now, at least they'll have something in common to talk about, the next time they saw each other. If they ever saw each other again, that is. She hoped it was so. It was a sudden realisation; she did want to see him again.

She leaned over and nudged Quan. Quan shot her an annoyed look, then looked in the direction she was pointing. Her eyes widened. Then, she quickly turned back. "Look, just forget about him, okay?"

Unfortunately for her, she had said it a little too loudly, and all the people around them turned to glare at them. When they finally looked away, Quan shot a quick glare at Gaia, then turned back to the concert.

Gaia hid a smile – Quan was really funny when she got angry. She continued to watch the young man.

Then, he played a solo. Tears came to her eyes; it was the most beautiful thing she had ever heard. Slow and aching, full of feeling, the notes soared over her head. It was a beautiful feeling, one so beautiful that no words could possibly describe it. It is always the case with music, when it is played really well, it is literally indescribable. It was magic, true magic.

Then, the whole orchestra joined him, and he merged in with the rest. The entire audience gave him a standing ovation after the piece ended. Gaia noticed that there was a slight, sheepish grin on his face, as if he could hardly believe he had played that well..

All too soon, the concert ended. Gaia and Quan stood up to leave as well. Quan was smiling. When they were out, she leaned over to Gaia and whispered, "I guess music isn't so bad after all, huh?"

Gaia gave her a mock glare. "Is that all you can say? Isn't so bad? Seems like concerts are wasted on you."

Quan smiled. "Okay, I admit, I really did like it a lot." From Quan, that certainly meant a lot.

Suddenly, Gaia stopped. There he was, standing at one corner. A huge group of young women were begging him for autographs, and he was sheepishly signing them. The girls were literally swooning, and some of them even kissed him! Gaia couldn't help giggling at his discomfort. Obviously, he didn't look very comfortable with people.

Quan was starting to look irritated but she sighed, glanced at her watch, and said nothing. She knew Gaia could be stubborn at times and when she was, she was unmovable, no matter what other people said.

Finally, after what seemed like forever, the young women left. He glanced up, noticed Gaia, and started moving towards them, looking rather shy. He certainly looked cute, and Gaia couldn't help blushing.

Both of them stood in front of each other, not daring to say anything, not even daring to look at each other. Finally, he broke the silence. "Well . . . so how was it?" he asked sheepishly.

"It was beautiful," she whispered. "I loved it so much. It was the most beautiful thing I have ever heard in my entire life."

He blushed. "It wasn't that great,"

"Believe me, it was," Gaia said. Then, hardly knowing what she was doing, she asked, "How long will you be here?"

He seemed stunned by the question, then smiled shyly. "Um . . . about a month, at least." He paused, then looked down at the ground. "Um . . . so . . . you want to have lunch tomorrow? My treat," he added hastily.

Gaia smiled. "That'll be great. What time?"

"How about 12pm? We can meet here, if it's convenient for you, that is."

"That'll be fine," she whispered.

"Great!" he grinned sheepishly. "Sorry, this is the first time I've ever asked anybody out . . ." He glanced at his watch. "Well, I guess I better get back, they'll all be looking for me. So . . . see you tomorrow?"

"Okay," she said. "But wait, I don't even know your name . . ."

He blushed. "My name's Momiji." Then, he turned and scampered off, still blushing.

Quan glared at her. "Are you crazy? Accepting a date from someone you barely even know?"

Gaia barely heard her. "Momiji . . . what a beautiful name . . ."


	4. Meeting

Hi! Forth chapter already! To all those who reviewed, thanks! You guys really made my day! Tell me what you think of this chapter, okay?

I only hope that i didn't make Momiji too OOC . . . oh, and speaking of Momiji, the next chapter is going to be about him and his thoughts. The format is like this - odd number chapters would be about Gaia, and even number chapters would be about Momiji. Okay?

Yay, on with the story!

(ps: can you teach me how to draw the rabbit?)

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Chapter 4

Gaia was nervous. She was very nervous. She was due for a date in half an hour, and she was nervous about how the whole thing would go. Somehow, she knew that she wanted to see him again, and she was really exhilarated to find that that the feeling was actually mutual. She had hardly slept the night before; she was so exited and nervous. She had been asked out before, and it had turned out to be such and awful experience that she didn't want to dwell on it. She told herself that time that she would never go out on a date again.

Yet, Momiji was different. She had looked into his eyes, and knew that he would never hurt her. Perhaps, he himself had been hurt before. Most likely, though. She couldn't help wondering what he had been through. He seemed both mature adult and young child at the same time. Perhaps, he'd decide to confide in her, and she in him.

Yet, would he understand her deepest secret? Would he understand that she could never be hugged, that she would turn into a rabbit every time she was hugged by the opposite sex? Would he understand what it felt like, to crave physical contact and yet never be able to receive it? To want to be loved and to love and yet not dare to because she didn't want to be hurt? To be truely lonely? The life of a zodiac member was a very lonely one.

She glanced up at her clock, and gave a start. Great, now she was behind time. She had been so busy worrying, that she had lost track of time. Now, she only had five minutes to change and get ready. There was no time for a quick shower, as she had originally planned. She would have no choice but to make do with what time she had left then.

She raced to her dresser and flung it open, then quickly picked out a pink long sleeved button down shirt and a white, ankle length skirt to go with it. She flung those on as fast as possible, then combed the tangles out of her wavy blond hair. She debated whether to tie it up or leave it, but she decided to leave it. Her hair was her prettiest feature, and she knew that she'd look better with it hanging over her back.

This done, she grabbed her handbag and flung in wallet, tissue, make-up pouch and comb into her bag, then glanced at the clock. Good, she might make it in time if she ran the whole way. She grabbed her keys and fled.

She ran all the way to the meeting place, hot and sweaty from the run. Momiji was there already, he was sitting on a bench, staring at the ground. He seemed to be deep in thought. Hearing her footsteps, he looked up, grinned at her, and walked over.

"Hai!" he called cheerfully. Then, his expression gave way to concern. "Are you alright? You look really out of breath."

By this time, Gaia was so out of breath that she could only nod. Momiji led her to the bench he had been sitting on when she appeared, and she sat down gratefully. He waited until her breathing evened before he asked, "What happened?"

Gaia looked embarrassed. "Uh . . ." she blushed slightly, then continued, "I kind of . . . got lost in my thoughts and realised a bit too late that I had to get ready. I'm really sorry that I'm late," she added hurriedly.

Momiji glanced at his watch. "Actually, you're not late, it's 12pm now. I was the one who was early."

"What?" Gaia sputtered. "You mean I raced all the way here for nothing?"

"Looks like it," Momiji replied, then grinned at her. "Oh well, at least you're here. So . . . where do you want to go?"

Gaia was about to say that she didn't mind anything, but she suddenly thought of something. "How long have you been here?"

Momiji considered. "Well . . . since the day before, but I've been too busy to try anything yet. Quite curious though."

Gaia smiled. "I know a place where we can have cheap Korean food. You want to try?"

"Okay!" he replied. They both started to make their way to the place.

Soon, they reached the place. It was rather crowded, but they managed to find a place to sit. They made their orders, then waited. Gaia felt a bit awkward. She wasn't exactly sure how to start the conversation, and she wondered whether Momiji thought she was a bimbo. She glanced at him, and saw to her relief that looking around the place interestedly.

Then, she remembered what she wanted to ask him. "Hey, where do you come from?"

"Japan!" He replied cheerfully. "It's a very nice place!"

Gaia looked at him in surprise. With his blond hair, he certainly didn't look Japanese. "You don't look Japanese, actually."

"I'm part German," He said. Then, "How long have you been here?"

"I've been here all my life," she said. "I'm actually part British. My mother was from Britain. She met my father there."

"Really?" Momiji brightened up. "My mother . . ." he pulled out his wallet, opened it, and gave it to her. She looked at it, and saw a beautiful blond woman who looked exactly like Momiji, even down to their hair colour. She was obviously German, and she looked stunning.

"Wow," Gaia whispered. "She looks beautiful . . . what's she like?"

Momiji was still smiling, but his eyes turned sad. "She's really nice . . ." he trailed off, then stared at his water glass. He looked as if he wanted to say something further, but decided against it.

Gaia could only stare at him. He seemed both happy and sad when he talked about his mother, and she wondered why. Perhaps, something had happened between them. It was obvious that he really loved his mother, but did she reciprocate that love? It would be really sad if she didn't. Gaia came from a family with loving parents, but she knew that there were some children whose parents didn't love them. If that was the case, she could understand why he seemed so sad. Well, maybe when they started trusting each other, perhaps he would tell her his story.

At that moment, the food came. "Great! I'm starving!" Momiji exclaimed.

Gaia smiled and picked up her chopsticks. Both immediately began tucking into the delicious food. They spent the rest of lunch chatting about their respective countries.


	5. Fear

Hi! Fifth chapter already! Sorry, i really was supposed to make it Momiji's point of view, but somehow, the story seemed to fun away from me, and construct itself on it's own. Hopefully it dosen't, but if so, sorry in advance! I'm sorry! I appologize to the entire world!

Read and review, okay? Thanks!

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Chapter 5

The next few days were the happiest in Gaia's entire life. Momiji was a really sweet person and ever since that first time that they went out together, they had been going out again for the next few days. She always looked forward to seeing him and, she enjoyed every single minute of their time spent together. She felt really attached towards him, and knew that he felt the same way towards her.

However, their happiness was not to last, because the day after their last meeting, she had been summoned by the head. She was terrified of the head, he had a way of putting down quiet hopes, and if anyone spoke back, the head's unpredictable temper would ensure that that person would be scarred for life. Nobody dared to speak out against him. The head struck fear into every single member of the family, especially in the members of the zodiac, the cat included.

Gaia felt herself trembling as she made her way to the main house. Quan met her at the door to the main house, and took her aside. "Be careful," she whispered. "The head is in a very bad mood today, whatever you do, don't antagonise him!"

Gaia took Quan's hands and stared at her. "I'm afraid," she whispered. "I can't go in. I can't." she blinked back tears and tried desperately to be brave.

Quan looked into Gaia's eyes, and saw the fear in them. "If it helps," she whispered. "I'll wait outside his room for you. Would it comfort you to know that I'm just outside the door? I would be able to come in if . . ." here, she swallowed. "If anything happens."

"Thank you," Gaia whispered. "I've got a date with Momiji later tonight."

Quan's eyes widened. "Whatever you do, don't mention Momiji! The head'll kill you!"

Gaia nodded. "I won't say anything about him. I won't want to endanger him."

"By the way," Quan remarked. "What's his last name?"

"Sohma," Gaia answered. "I saw it in the concert programme."

Quan's eyes widened. "Isn't that Natsu's last name?"

"Oh my gosh," Gaia whispered. "I never realised that!" Natsu was the cat, and none of the family members wanted to have the same surname as him, so they ordered him to take his mother's last name. "I should get him to meet Natsu – Natsu will be pleased to meet someone from his mother's side."

Quan nodded. Then, she glanced at the main house. "I think you better go in."

The fear reappeared in Gaia's eyes but she nodded, swallowed, and walked up the stairs. Quan accompanied her to the head's room, then gave her a reassuring look as Gaia opened the door and went in.

As always, the room was dark At first, she couldn't see anything, but when her eyes got used to the darkness, she saw a dark figure reclining on a couch. She walked towards the dark figure, bowed, then knelt on the floor, her fists clenched on her lap. The dark figure slowly turned towards her.

"Welcome in, Gaia," the dark figure murmured. "It's been too long since the last time I saw you. We really must meet more often."

Gaia nodded, staring at her hands. Her throat felt so dry, she could barely swallow.

The head leaned over to her and whispered. "Are you scared?"

Gaia quickly shook her head.

The head smirked. "Are you sure? You seem terrified." He paused. "You normally would be scared if you had done something wrong, won't you?"

Gaia stared at him at these words. In spite of herself, her entire frame seemed to shake. She started to shake her head desperately but the head grabbed her chin and forced her to look back at him. This time, his voice sounded low and threatening. "Try not to test my patience. I've heard stories of you meeting a young blond man."

She did not say anything. The head voice dropped back to calmness again. "I never want to see hear of this ever again." He smirked. "What man in his right mind would want to hang out with you. You know that, don't you? What would happen if he knew of the curse? Would he still want to go out with you? Perhaps, it's for the best. After all, you would be saved from heartbreak if he were to find out about the curse. Understand?"

Gaia nodded quickly. The head waved a hand. "Remember what I have said. You may go now."

She jumped out and backed out of the door. She was lucky this time, in cases like these, there were always signs of physical abuse on the victims. Quan was still waiting outside, but Gaia didn't think she could face her friend. She stood in front of her friend with her head down, then shook her head. Quan looked concerned, then she took Gaia by the hand and led her out of the house, and into her room.

Gaia went back to her room after telling Quan what had transpired in that room, with the head. "What are you going to do next?" Gaia had shaken her head, not replying to her friend's question. Now, that question was ringing in her head, and she could barely think of anything else.

She sat on her bed and glanced at the clock. It was almost time to get ready. She was due to meet Momiji for dinner, but she didn't think she could face him. Slowly, she reached for her phone, and dialled his number.

Momiji answered on the third ring. "Hai! Who's this?"

Gaia's voice caught. Hearing his cheerful voice on the other line bought heartache to her. She loved to hear that voice, she loved how he could remain cheerful even though he was as tired as death. Not seeing him ever again tore at her heart. She tried to convince herself that it was better that way, but somehow, that didn't seem to work.

"Hello?" Now, Momiji was starting to sound confused and worried.

Gaia steeled herself to answer him. "It's me."

"Gaia? Is that you? What's wrong? Are you alright?"Now, Momiji was really worried.

Gaia closed her eyes. She had to do this, she really didn't want to, but she had to do this. She really didn't want both of them to get into trouble with the head. However, she did love him. She realised that now. After all, if she didn't love him, she wouldn't be hurting so much now.

Much as she didn't want to, she knew she had to do this. "I'm sorry," she finally whispered. "I . . . I can't see you anymore . . ." There was a shocked silence at the other end of the phone. Gaia couldn't bear to hear his response, so she quickly put down the phone.

She sat quietly on her bed, staring at her clenched fists. "Quan was right," she finally whispered to herself. "I shouldn't have started this in the first place." To her horror, she found tears starting to well up in her eyes. She lay down on her bed and covered her face with the pillows, finally letting the tears fall.


	6. Transform

Hi! My latest chapter! Hope you guys like it! Oh, and by the way, I'm planning tointroduce some of the Japanese Zodiac into the story. Reply and tell me what you think! We'll be meeting old friends like Kyo, Yuki and Haru, so look out for that! Read and reply, okay? Thanks!

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Chapter 6 

The alarm clock rang. Gaia sat up, and turned the alarm off. She sighed, but did not bother to get up, so she stayed where she was. She didn't even feel like getting out of bed, much less, going to work. She did love her work, but music always reminded her of Momiji, and she really did not want to remember him.

She wondered how he was doing right now, how he was coping. Perhaps, he would probably be feeling the same thing as her. He really did care about her, she knew that. She could see it in his eyes, and she felt incredibly guilty about hurting his feelings. She did love him, he was the one guy she could be herself around, and it was he who broke into the hard brick wall around her heart. However, she did know that if she continued to see him, not only would the head punish her; he would be punished as well.

It was safer that way. Nobody would be hurt. Physically, that is.

Emotion-wise, it was another story altogether. How she missed him.

Finally, she got out of bed. She had a shower, then changed into her work clothes. Her hand brushed against the picture frame by her bedside, and she involuntarily picked it up. It was a picture of him. During their second meeting, she had asked for a picture of him to keep, then blushed as she realised that he would think of her as a stalker.

Surprisingly, he didn't seem to mind. Instead, he had laughed, and said he would bring one the next time they saw each other. Then, he had blushed and asked for one of her.

"To remember you by," he had said.

Gaia had also blushed and said that yes, she didn't mind, and that she'd bring one for him the next time they met.

Gaia had picked a picture of herself wearing her favourite outfit and grinning at the camera. She had told him that it had been taken the day after she had graduated from music school with a diploma in music. Momiji grinned, said that she looked beautiful, then gave her his own.

That picture literally took her breath away. In the picture, he had been wearing a long, white collared shirt and a pair of blue jeans. He was grinning at the camera, and with his blond hair in his eyes, blowing in the wind, he looked so dishy. She fell in love with him the moment she saw the picture.

"It's beautiful," she whispered.

Momiji reached out and brushed away a strand of hair behind her ear. "You're the one who looks beautiful. You really do."

Then, he blushed and lowered his hand. Gaia reached out to take it, and at that moment, they both knew that they cared about each other.

Gaia couldn't help smiling as she remembered that moment. At that time, she had been embarrassed about asking him for the picture, but now, she was glad she did so. At least she had something to remember him by, now that they couldn't see each other anymore.

After staring at the picture for a few minutes, she finally put it down and left the house to go to her workplace.

She loved her work. She worked as a piano teacher at a prestigious music school, and she loved her work there. The students she taught were really respectful towards her and they really had a passion for music.

Not only that, they also confided in her about their lives, their school, their parents, their passions, their ambitions. Sometimes, they came to her in tears, and she consoled them, patting their shoulders as they sobbed out their stories to her. She also gave advice when needed, and as a result, she was loved and respected by her students.

In return, she enjoyed teaching them. She enjoyed their triumph when they got a particular hard piece correct, and she enjoyed communicating with them. Everyday, she would go home tired, but happy and fulfilled.

However, this time round, she felt tired even before she started teaching. She felt so tired, she really didn't want to go to work. However, she decided that she had to, because all her students were depending on her to teach them, and she couldn't disappoint them.

Besides, going to work would help her forget about Momiji . . .

Luckily for her, it did work. After a few minutes, she managed to get into the mood to teach, and it did get her mind of Momiji.

It is said that music helps the soul. After today, she was convinced.

It was late afternoon when she finally started to get ready to go home. The moment her last student left, all her thoughts that she wanted to keep at bay came back, and once again, she felt like crying. She couldn't bear to go home, she would then be alone with her thoughts . . . and she couldn't bear to be alone. Certainly not now.

Maybe she could go and ask Quan whether she could stay overnight at her place. Quan wouldn't mind, she would even look forward to it. And, it certainly beat the loneliness. However, she wondered how Quan would take it if she came to spend the night with her everyday until she managed to get over him. Oh well, she'd ask Quan when she got back. Worry about that later.

It was a cool evening, and she hugged her jacket closer to her thin frame. She liked the cool air, loved the feeling of it blowing against her.

She kept her head down as she walked. Suddenly, she crashed into someone.

Poof!

She disappeared in a cloud of smoke, and when the smoke disappeared, there she was, a yellow rabbit sitting on a pile of clothes. She slowly looked up, and there he was. Momiji.

Momiji's eyes widened in shock. He glanced around, then picked her up in one hand and her clothes and handbag with the other, and ran away, away from the street before anybody noticed. Luckily, when she transformed, nobody noticed, being caught up in their own lives.

He finally stopped when he reached a secluded spot in the park. He dropped her clothes and handbag on a bench, then sat down still holding her. He placed her gently on the bench, but to his surprise, she climbed back onto his lap and snuggled against him. He picked her up again and started stroking her. Both of them were quiet for a while, until Gaia finally broke the silence.

"I'm surprised you didn't run away," she murmured. "Or laugh."

"I wouldn't have," he replied. "Now I know why you can't be hugged. When I was younger . . . I used to turn into a rabbit too. It's part of the curse, the zodiac curse. My family was cursed as well."

Gaia was shocked. She certainly hadn't expected this. She had thought that Momiji wouldn't understand, and yet, not only did he understand, he went through the same thing as well! "How did you cope with it?" she finally asked.

When he didn't answer, she looked up, and was quite surprised to see the sadness on his face. "I just . . . hid all my feelings behind a cheerful exterior. It was hard, but . . . I didn't want them to find out . . ."

"I do the same thing too . . ." she murmured. "I . . . I'm really sorry I had to break off with you, I really didn't want to, but the head . . . he'd hurt us if we are seen together, but I really do want to see you again."

"Oh . . ." Momiji trailed off into silence. "I . . . I'm not sure what we should do. What do you think? Will he relent if he knew I was from a zodiac as well?"

"I doubt it," she whispered. "He'd be jealous if he found out his zodiac was spending time with someone else rather than him. How long can you stay?"

"As long as needed," he replied. "Why?"

"We need to talk. Now that you know about my secret, I can tell you everything."


	7. Rabbits

Hi! Seventh chapter up! Sorry about being so late about it, i had so much to do! Pre-U life is so stressing! So much homework, projects and what have you. Plus, there was this model UN conference that i went for, and it was quite interesting. We had to represent countries and form alliances, position papers, opening speeches, working papers, and resolution papers. I represented Madagascar, and i was so pissed off about representing a country with the same name as a movie i would never ever watch in my entire life. I didn't even know Madagascar was a country, i thought it was a movie.

After spending three days being called "Madagascar", i'm going to kill myself the next time i ever hear that word.

Oh well, at least i can now upload my chapter! Read and enjoy. Hope you like it! Oh, and please review! Thankies!

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Chapter 7

Gaia felt as if she was in heaven. This had never ever happened before. It normally took a long time for her to get to trust people, but suddenly, here she was feeling close to someone whom she had met for only a week.

She snuggled against him and relaxed as he gently stroked her beautiful yellow fur. "You have nice fur, you know that?" he teased. "It's so soft."

"I bet yours must have felt as soft," she murmured sleepily. Then, "You know, I really didn't want to break off with you. You're the first person I've been able to trust in such time . . . and I really didn't want to stop seeing you."

Momiji just had to sigh in relief. When she broke off with him and then hung up, he had just sat there, frozen, still holding his hand phone to his ear, for at least five minutes. He just couldn't comprehend why she'd do such a thing, maybe it was because he had made her angry? He was so stupid; he didn't even know why she was angry with him in the first place. He never could keep a relationship, no matter what.

His first instinct was to call her again, but when he tried, she had obviously disconnected her phone, and he couldn't get to her. He tried calling her hand phone, but it was turned off as well. Over the next few hours, he made about seven calls both to her phone and her hand phone, but finally gave up when she still did not answer.

He could barely sleep that night, tossing and turning about in his bed, until finally, he just turned on his light and read. He finally fell asleep after a few hours, but when he woke up, he felt as if he hadn't slept at all.

During practice, he could barely concentrate and kept playing wrong notes until his section leader called him up. His section leader had been about to scream at him when he saw the normally cheerful Momiji looking as if he'd either faint or cry during the next few seconds, he wisely told him to go back to his room and rest.

Momiji had thanked him, grabbed his bag, and left. He stayed in his room for a while, staring into space, until he finally had enough and went for a walk to clear his head. He knew this could not go on. He could not spend his whole life, feeling like this. Maybe he should try to move on . . .

Yeah, right.

And then, someone walked into him. There was a loud poof, and at first, he thought that the curse had come back, and he was turning into a rabbit, but when the smoke cleared, he realised that he was still a human being, his clothes were still on him and there, at his feet was a little yellow rabbit. His eyes widened as he realised was that the rabbit was lying on clothes that belonged to Gaia, and that her handbag was laying right next to it.

Immediately, he reached down, grabbed the rabbit with one hand and the clothes and handbag with the other, and fled. He knew that the park was mostly empty at this time, and made for it, glancing around to make sure that nobody saw them flee. Luckily, everyone was too caught up in their lives to notice what was going on.

Finally, he reached the park. He spied an unoccupied bench and dropped the rabbit, clothes and handbag on it, before sitting down next to them, and the rabbit had climbed into his lap.

Now here they were, Gaia as a yellow rabbit and Momiji stroking her fur. She sighed contentedly. Finally, though reluctant to, Momiji broke the silence. "So, what happened?" he asked gently.

Gaia made a face. "Somehow, he found out about us. I have no idea how he did, but he found out about us. He forbade me from seeing you, and said that the next time he saw us together, he would hurt you. I had no choice . . . I really didn't want to harm you so . . ." She trailed off, then took a deep breath. "He said that . . . no one would like me, because . . . because of what I am. Ever since I was a child, he had been telling me that, and as a result, I thought it was true.

The first time he told me that, I was about three. I . . . as a result, I never dared to make friends. I always kept to myself, never talking to anyone. Everybody thought I was boring or snobbish – my family was one of great social standing here, and they never bothered to talk to me. I grew up without a single friend throughout my entire. Well, with the exception of those other zodiacs who knew what I was going through.

A few months ago, someone really did ask me out. He was an ex-classmate. I was so scared, what if he found out about me? I was so scared, I didn't dare to say anything, and he took that for a yes. We went out for a few days, but it was as if this . . . this fear was . . . at the bottom of my heart. Then one day, he hugged me and I turned into a rabbit. He backed away, and never spoke to me again. I was so hurt, and I told myself that I would never fall in love again. No one would accept me."

"That's not true," Momiji immediately pointed out. "I mean . . ." he turned red. "Sure, there are people who are this shallow, but it's the inside that counts and there are people who go for what is inside." He hesitated, desperately trying to think of what to say next. "You're a really nice person, and you're the first person that I can . . . really trust and . . . fall in love with. I . . . I would want to . . . go out with you. Really." He looked away, because he knew that his entire face was red this time. Suddenly, he realised that he was acting like Kyo, and wondered how on earth he could think something like that at a time like this.

"You . . . you really . . . do love me?" she asked hesitantly. He nodded, still looking away. "Even if . . . I can't be hugged?" He nodded again, then glanced hesitantly back at her. To his surprise, she scampered up and stared at him in shock. "I . . . love you as well!"

Now, it was his turn to be shocked. He felt so touched. "Really? No one . . . ever told me that before."

"Huh?" she looked surprised. "What about your parents?"

Now, it was his turn to look sad. "Not my parents. Hatori erased my mother's memories of me because she couldn't live with the fact that she had give birth to a rabbit. I lived separately from my parents because my father didn't want her to be reminded of what happened. I couldn't even play with my younger sister, my father was so afraid that she would say something to remind my mother of me." He sighed and stared up into the sky. "I'm still waiting for them to find out about me, but so far, it hasn't happened yet. However, they are still my family, and even though they don't care about me, I still care for them. Maybe it's stupid and hopeless, but I still do."

"That's so sad," she whispered. That explained why he seemed so sad. His parents didn't love him. He loved his parents, but they didn't love him. It was so . . . heartbreaking, having to remain on the outside looking in, watching his family being so happy together, and knowing that he would never feel this happiness himself.

She felt like crying. What was this curse? Why did it have to destroy their lives, their families, their ambitions? When would it all end? Would this go on for ever and ever? Destroying lives wherever it struck?

Then, it happened. She transformed back into a human. Momiji gasped and immediately turned away, his face bright red. She was so mortified, blabbering apologies as she grabbed her clothes and dived into the bushes to change back. When she finally appeared, dressed, her entire face was red. The moment both of them dared to look at each other again, they burst out laughing. They laughed until tears came to their eyes.

"Now, that's embarrassing," she finally managed to gasp out.

"Yup, it was." He grinned. "I'm so happy though, someone finally loves me."

"Yup, and someone finally loves me." She answered happily. "Have you eaten?"

"Nope," he answered. "You?"

"Me neither." She said. "Let's get something to eat, shall we?"

"Okay," he replied. Both of them stood up and walked out of the park, hand in hand, chatting about everything under the sun.

"By the way," she asked. "I know I've never asked this before, but exactly how old are you?" She blushed. "I just turned twenty seven."

"How old do you think I am?" he asked.

She considered. "Um . . . twenty five?"

He laughed. "Hey, thanks for telling me I look so young! Nope, I'm older though. I'll be twenty nine in two weeks time. Will I get a present?" he teased.

"Of course," she replied. "What do you like?"

"Rabbits!" he answered cheerfully.

She just had to laugh. "Okay, I'll see what I can do."


	8. Friends

Hi! Another chapter from yours truely! I'm so excited about this, i'm almost reaching my favourite part of the story now. Thanks for all your reviews!

It is now time for me to announce my favourite world cup teams. My favourite world cup teams are . . . South Korea and Czech Republic! I know South Korea are not that good, though i'm hoping that they would at least reach the top sixteen. Last world cup, they were amazing, though it was probably due to home support. Top sixteen would be good enough.

Czech Republic are really good, their fifa ranking is actually second, after Brazil, so this shows how good they are. I'm hoping that they would at least reach the semi-finals, that would be good enough for me. I heard some people say that the Czech Rep actually stand a chance of winning the world cup. If so, how cool that would be! I better not set such high expectations though, i'll only end up disappointed in the end.

Hey . . . is it just me or does Pavel Nedved (Czech Rep) look like a certain bunny boy? He is nicknamed the Duracell bunny, and he's blond as well. Though i can't imagine him turning into a bunny after being hugged by the opposite sex . . .

I really wish i made Gaia Czech instead of English, because i really cannot stand the England team . . . especially their vain captain . . .

Oh well, read and reply, okay? Thanks!

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Chapter 8 

Over the next few days, Gaia and Momiji reluctantly avoided one another. They did not have a choice; they knew that if the head of the family caught them together, they would really be in trouble.

However, that did not make a difference in their feelings. They knew that they loved each other, and that their feelings would not change. It had been a surprise to both of them to learn that there were other families cursed with the spirit of the zodiac, but it also became a comfort to them as well. At least, they knew that they were not alone in their suffering, and that others knew what they were going through.

Plus, they had each other. That was more than enough.

However, a few days later, she found Momiji waiting outside her workplace. He was leaning against the wall, glancing up from time to time, obviously hoping to catch her. The moment he saw her, he waved and walked over to her. She smiled up at him, but noticed that he looked a little worried. "Hi," she said. "What's wrong?"

He sighed. "It's just that . . . I'll be leaving for Japan in a few weeks."

"What? Oh, no!" Gaia looked horrified. "Will you be coming back?" There was a long pause. Gaia expected the worst.

"I . . . I'm not sure whether we'll be coming back." He said finally. "I'll try to but . . . I'm not sure whether I can. I mean, it depends on whether we will be coming back to perform, but I doubt they would . . ."

For a moment, Gaia felt shocked and upset. Then, they turned to anger. She felt like slapping him, but decided that she better not. "Why on earth would you bother to lead me on when you knew that you'd be leaving in the first place?" she screamed at him. "Did you decide to get to know me just so that you won't be bored here? If that's the case, I'm going to leave because I really do not like being used this way!" She turned and stalked off.

"Wait!" Momiji rushed after her and grabbed her hand. She whirled at the touch and gave him a hard slap across the face. It was all in a moment of impulse, even if she tried, she probably would not have been able to prevent herself from doing so. She froze, shocked at what she had done.

"Um . . ." was the only thing she could think of saying.

Momiji quickly let go of her hand. "I . . . I'm sorry," he stammered. "Maybe I shouldn't have . . ." A bruise was already forming on his left cheek.

Gaia looked at him. He really did look sorry and unhappy, and her heart softened. How could she remain angry with someone who looked as sad as that? She said finally, "You shouldn't have led me on."

"I . . . I didn't want to," he replied quietly, staring at the ground. "I didn't think that I would meet you, and fall in love with you. Now that I know you, I really don't want to leave." He took a deep breath. "Actually, I meant to ask whether . . . you'd come to Japan with me."

Gaia just stared at him. "Um . . . I," she stammered. "I'm not sure. My family head would not allow me to. He won't even allow me to see you in the first place, much less, go to Japan with you."

"But do you want to?" he asked, looking at her with this hopeful look in his eyes. Her heart melted. She knew that she really did want to go with him, but the fear of what the head would do to her made her hesitate.

"I . . . I don't know," she said finally. "Can I think about this first? It's such a big thing, I'm having trouble deciding . . ."

"Okay . . ." he said. They stood there silently, the tension apparent between them.

"I didn't mean to slap you," she said finally, staring down at the ground.

"It's okay," he said, rather ruefully. "I did deserve it anyway."

"I guess I better get going," she said, glancing at her watch. "They'll be expecting me home."

"Okay," he replied, reluctantly. "But you will think about it, right?"

"Yes," she answered. "I . . . I'll tell you my answer in a few days time." She turned and walked away, head down against the wind. However, even without looking, she could still feel his eyes on the back of her head.

Gaia spent the whole of the next day thinking about it. She really couldn't decide. She knew that she really did want to. What she would give to be able to leave her abusive family head and paranoid parents behind, but she knew that she would miss all the friends that she made here. There was no way that she could write to them because they were sure to be able to track her down. They might even go to Japan and bring her back by force. What they would do to her if they caught her! If she was lucky, she would just get locked away.

She could not bear to think of what they would do to her if they caught her.

To leave for Japan, she would have to leave everybody behind, and risk punishment if she was found out. To stay in Korea would be to live for the rest of her life in loneliness and regret, without Momiji.

She just couldn't decide.

The next day, while she was sitting in her room thinking, she heard a soft knocking on her door. She sighed and opened it. It turned out to be Quan. "Hi," Quan said. "I need to ask to you about something."

Gaia smiled at her. It was a long time since she had time to have a good heartfelt chat with her best friend. "Sure," she replied. "Come in!" She left Quan sitting in her sitting room and went to get drinks for both of them.

When she returned, she saw that Quan leafing through some of her music scores. She placed the drinks on the table. Quan looked up the moment she heard her. "Thanks," she said, reaching for one of the drinks. She took a careful sip, and then placed her cup on one of the coasters. Both of them remained silent for a while, just staring at the drinks. "So . . ." Gaia finally began. "What was it you wanted to ask me?"

"Well . . ." Quan took a deep breath. "I wanted to ask about Momiji – that's his name, right?"

"Yes," Gaia replied. "What about him?"

"I wanted to know . . . how are things between both of you." Quan said. "Are you still seeing him, or . . ."

"I don't know," Gaia answered. "He has to go back to Japan."

Quan raised an eyebrow. "He doesn't look Japanese."

"Oh, he's part German." Gaia said.

"Wow," Quan remarked. "What a combination, him being German and you being English. Your kids are going to end up being German-English-Japanese-Korean." She took one look at Gaia's face, and sighed. "Sorry, maybe I shouldn't have said that. But seriously, how are things going between you and him?"

"It's . . . not been easy," she said finally. She really couldn't decide on whether she should tell Quan or not. Quan was her best friend, but still . . . would Quan be angry if she told her. She looked up at her friend, and saw that despite Quan's tough exterior, her eyes were full of concern for her. She took a deep breath, then proceeded to tell her everything that happened between them.


	9. Loyalty

Hi! 9th chapter already! Hopefully, you guys will like it. Read and review, okay? Thanks!

Oh, and thanks for all your reviews as well! Really means a lot to me!

To tell the truth, I'm a bit (okay, understatement) upset about Czech Republic's loss to Ghana. I'm so worried, what if they don't make it to the next round. I'm so scared . . . help! And with Jan Koller and Milan Baros out, will they still be able to fight Italy? I don't know what I'll do if they don't make it to the next round. Kill myself?

At least I still have South Korea to support . . .

Oh well, hope you like my next chapter!

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Chapter 9

"You're kidding!" Quan exclaimed. "You mean he's possessed by the rabbit as well?"

"He used to be," Gaia corrected her. "His curse ended, but he's not sure how it ended because he left before it ended."

"Oh . . ." Quan trailed off.

"And," Gaia added. "He asked me to come with him to Japan."

"What!" Quan yelled, jumping to her feet. "And what are you going to do?"

"I . . . I don't know," Gaia looked down at her feet.

Quan glared at her. "What are you, crazy? You didn't tell him yes did you? Do you know how dangerous it is, gallivanting off to a foreign country with a man you barely even know? And what do you think our head is going to do? Do you really think he's going to let you leave? Dream on! I told you before, it's dangerous to get mixed up with men outside the curse, but no, you didn't listen to me! Now look at all the trouble you're in! You really are an idiot, you know that? So what are you going to do now?"

Gaia jumped up as well. "Quan, please listen," she pleaded. "I know, it's dangerous to get involved, but look at what it's done to me. Despite all these problems, I actually feel happy knowing that there are people outside this family who do accept me. It's made me feel much more comfortable. Did you know that Momiji's the first person who ever told me he loved me? Thanks to him, I'm starting to accept myself more. He has done so much for me. And, I've also learnt that we're not the only ones. He himself has suffered as well. His mother's memories of him were erased, and he's had to live on his own, with no one to take care of him. I really do appreciate your concern over me from the bottom of my heart, but I really don't regret meeting him at all."

Quan sighed. "Okay, fine, you've made your point. But that still does not answer my question. What are you going to do?"

Gaia slumped down. "I . . . don't know."

"Gaia," Quan said quietly, "What do you want?"

Gaia sighed, and stared at the ground. "I want to go to Japan, with him," she said, finally.

Quan glared at her. "You're crazy."

"I know," Gaia replied sadly. "I can't, because I know our head is not going to allow me to do so. What should I do? For me, it's either risking the danger, or staying here alone and unhappy for the rest of my life."

Quan thought for a while. For the first time, she was utterly at a lost. For Quan herself, it was either yes or no, hell to those who disagreed, just live with the consequences. However, now, she was beginning to realise herself that there was no such thing as a simple answer. Quan herself was under the curse as well, except that she turned into a dog when hugged. All her life, she had built a hard shell around herself, hiding from and becoming numb to her feelings, so much so that she barely felt anything anymore. She was so sure that she was right; at least now, nothing could hurt her ever again.

However, when it came to Gaia, it was a different story altogether. The first time she met Gaia was when they were both in high school. Gaia's parents were so protective of their daughter that she was not allowed to associate herself with other people. She had to come home immediately after school. The moment her parents saw her talking to someone, they would immediately pull her away. Every time she saw Gaia, she was always with her parents, never saying anything, while her parents did all the talking for her. She never talked at all, not even during the new years feasts with the other zodiacs.

The first time Quan really talked to Gaia was during high school. It was the first day of high school, and Quan was feeling lonely. She did not want to talk to anyone outside her family because she felt that they would only hurt her in the end. She had gone to the library, and found Gaia there, reading. Gaia looked lonely as well. She recognised Gaia because she had seen her before at the main house, and knew that she was a zodiac as well. She went over to talk to her, and both girls had remained best friends ever since.

She really admired Gaia because Gaia could feel. She dared to open her heart, knowing that she could get hurt in the process, but also knowing that she could feel joy. She had once said, "I don't want to loose any of my emotions because emotions make me feel human. I can feel, therefore, I can care for others and help them. Even if . . . we are not human, we can still be humane."

Quan had disagreed, because she knew that she really did not want to open her heart. She would only get hurt, and who cared about being human because they weren't even human in the first place.

Of course, she did not tell her friend because she did not want to hurt her feelings. She did disagree, but at the same time, she knew that she could be right.

However, looking at Gaia now, she realised that she could not help her friend. She needed to be able to feel, to understand what her friend was going through. She knew she could not, because all those years, she would not allow herself to feel any emotions. "I don't know," she mumbled.

Gaia stared at her in surprise. Since when did Quan not know what to do? "So . . ." she began, but dared not finish.

Quan finally looked up at her. "I think you should do what you believe in," she finally said.

"Really?" Gaia asked.

Quan said quietly, "I trust you. You do know what you are doing. Even though you can be quite the air headed bimbo sometimes." Gaia just had to smile, that was so typically Quan. She just couldn't give a straight complement. She sighed and continued, "I've never seen you so . . . stubborn before, so I know that you really do know what you want. You want to be happy, don't you?"

Gaia looked down at her hands. "Yes," she mumbled. "But not at the expense of hurting others . . ."

"And," she interrupted, "You feel that Momiji can make you happy?"

Gaia nodded eagerly. "Yes, and . . ."

"Then by all means, follow him to Japan," Quan finished. "Even though I'll miss you, but at least you'll be happy."

"But it's too dangerous!" Gaia wailed. "What if they find out? They have all the means to force me back and . . ."

"I'll see what I can do," Quan reassured her. "I can always convince them or something."

Gaia stared at her in horror. "But you'll get into trouble!"

Quan glared at her. "No I won't!" she snapped. "I too, know what I'm doing, and I do have resources."

"I'm not going to allow you to get yourself into trouble because of me," Gaia snapped back. "I'm not going to run off to Japan and leave you to face all the trouble yourself! You might get punished, or even worse, they might force my whereabouts out of you!"

There was a silence, as both women thought about what do to next.

"Maybe you could come with me to Japan?" Gaia finally asked, tentatively. "I would miss you . . ."

"Nah," Quan gave a laugh. "I love Korea too much, my place is here." She patted her friend on her arm. "Don't worry, we'll think of something. I'll help you."

"Thanks," Gaia started sniffing. "You're my best friend . . ."

"Stop that," Quan snapped. "You know I can't stand people crying in front of me. It makes me feel . . . emotional."

Gaia just had to laugh. "Okay, fine. I'll try not to. But still, thanks so much."

Quan smiled. "Hey, as long as you're happy, I'm happy. Now go wash your face. Your nose is running."


	10. Natsu

Hi! My next chapter! Hope you guys like it! Please review and reply, okay?

For all those who reviewed, thanks so much! You guys really made my day!

I just realised that i forgot to state the surname of Gaia's family - Ahn. I was just wondering how i came up with that surname when i read through some of my world cup stuff, and realised that it's the surname of Ahn Jung Hwan, the soccer star who scored against Italy in the 2002 world cup. Cool hun? I can't believe i forgot his name until now! Oh well, at least i now know.

Hope you guys enjoy my story!

* * *

Chapter 10

Gaia stood up, thanked Quan again, and left for her own apartment. However, just as she stepped out of the front door, she heard a little rustling sound. At first, she was scared, because she was afraid that maybe it was a spy, and the spy was going to report the incident to the family head. However, her fears were soon appeased because a few seconds later, a figure stepped out of the bushes. She realised that it was a friend, and that it was Natsu.

She knew it was Natsu because of his orange hair. It seemed to reflect light from any nearby source, and appear glowing. She did like Natsu's hair, because it was certainly a very unusual, though pretty, colour for a person's hair. Natsu would be turning sixteen in a few days time, and he was beginning to look sixteen, with his tall, thin frame and mature eyes.

However, she suddenly realised that Natsu had come out from the bushes directly under Quan's window. He might have heard everything that they had been talking about. She grabbed Natsu by the hand and led him away, into a clump of trees.

"Um . . ." Natsu began.

Gaia turned and glared at him. "Do you know how rude it is to listen in on other people's conversations?"

Natsu hung his head. "Sorry," he mumbled. "But . . ."

"How much have you heard?" Gaia demanded.

Natsu squirmed. Finally, he mumbled, "Not that much. I only heard that you wanted to go to Japan with . . . someone . . . and big sister Quan promised to help you."

"Natsu, that is so rude of you!" Gaia scolded. "Listening on other people's private conversations like that! Haven't your parents taught you . . ." she suddenly trailed of as she realised that Natsu had turned away at the mention of his parents.

Gaia immediately felt terrible. About a year ago, Natsu's parents were killed in a car accident. Unlike most of the other zodiacs, Natsu's parents actually cared about him. They had given him the freedom to do what he wanted and at the same time, instilled discipline in him. He knew that they loved and cared for him, because they told him so many times, and he loved them back. They were really kind to every single person who came along, and everybody mourned for them when they died.

After they died, they had been about to lock Natsu in the dark room for the rest of his life but Quan intervened, volunteering to adopt him until he turned eighteen. She wanted to keep him longer until he was old enough to live independently, but the head insisted that he would be locked away after he turned eighteen. The only problem was that Quan was already living with Jung Yin, and that Jung Yin turned into the rat. Natsu and Jung Yin really couldn't get along, but Natsu knew that he did not have a choice. It was either this, or being locked away for the rest of his life. Quan complained numerous times about Natsu and Jung Yin almost breaking apart the house in their frequent quarrels, and Gaia had just laughed, because to tell the truth, it really was quite funny. Plus, Quan did not really mind anyway.

Natsu was a really nice boy. When his parents were alive, he was cheerful and quite talkative. Unfortunately, ever since his parents passed away, he had nobody to protect him from the rest of the family. They were terrible towards him, always telling their children to stay away from him, calling terrible names in front of everybody else, and slapping him across the face every time he spoke up. It was no wonder he had retreated into himself, practically mute, just waiting hopelessly for the time when he would be locked in the dark room. He was so timid, these days, just a shadow of his former self.

Looking at Natsu now, she felt really awful about reminding him of his parents. They were the only people outside the zodiac who accepted him and loved him for who he was, even though he was the cat. He was looking up at her now, bracing himself for a slap that he was sure would come, and she felt even worse. "I'm really sorry," she said finally. "I really didn't mean to say that. It's just that I was angry about you listening in to our conversation, that's all."

"It's okay," Natsu replied. There was a long silence. Natsu kept looking up at her. It was obvious that Natsu wanted to ask her something.

"What's wrong?" she asked finally. "Do you want to ask me something?"

Natsu tugged at his shirt. It was what he normally did when he was nervous. "Um . . . that guy you are seeing – he is from Japan?"

"Yes, why?" Gaia asked warily.

"What is his last name?" Natsu asked. Gaia could tell that he was trying not to sound nervous.

"Sohma, same as yours," she answered. She couldn't help feeling sorry for Natsu; the reason why his surname was so different from everybody else in the family was that his family did not want to have the same surname as the cat. Sohma was his mother's last name. "Your mother was Japanese, am I right?"

He nodded. "Is he . . . is he from the same family my mother?"

Gaia looked thoughtful. "Must be. After all, they have the same surname."

Natsu looked up at her, pleadingly. "Can I please meet him?"

Gaia just stared at him stunned. "What? Are you sure?"

He nodded quickly. "I would like to meet someone from my mother's side of the family. I'm sure that they would be nice people." His next statement was spoken as softly as possible, "Anybody would be nicer that these people." However, Gaia still heard his words, and her heart went out to him again.

"I'll see what I can do," she assured him. "I'll be seeing him tomorrow, anyway. Shall I come and fetch you when it is time?"

For the first time, the boy smiled up at her. "That'll be nice," he replied gratefully. "Thank you so much!"

She smiled back at him and patted his shoulder. "I'll see you tomorrow, then. Better go and get some rest, okay?"

"Okay," he whispered and slipped away, back to Quan's house.

Gaia watched him leave, feeling sorrowful for him. He was such a nice boy; he really did not deserve the treatment he was receiving at the hands of his relatives. She sighed and walked back to her house. Oh well, at least she was able to brighten up his day.

The next morning, Gaia walked briskly to Quan's house and knocked. Quan opened the door, yawning. "Gosh, it's the weekend," she mumbled. "Do you have to wake up so early?"

"Hi, Quan," she grinned. "As cheerful as usual in the morning. Is Natsu ready?"

Quan rubbed her eyes and walked inside. A few minutes later, she appeared with Natsu. "Hello," she greeted him cheerfully. "Are you ready to go yet?" The boy nodded shyly and stepped out of the house.

"See yah later," Quan responded as she closed the door. "Tell me how it goes, okay?"

"Okay," Gaia said cheerfully. "See you later!"

Ten minutes later, they were outside Momiji's apartment. The night before, Gaia had called Momiji and told him that they would be coming to his place the next day and that she needed his address. Momiji had cheerfully given her his address, and after that, they chatted about how their day went. However, neither of them broached the subject of Momiji's leaving for Japan and whether Gaia was to follow nor not.

Gaia pressed the doorbell, and a few seconds later, Momiji answered. "Hi!" he greeted them. "Come on in."

Gaia smiled up at him and squeezed his hand, before stepping in. She introduced the boy standing next to her. "This is Natsu, he's my younger cousin, sixteen this year. Natsu, this is Momiji, my um . . . boyfriend." She glanced at Momiji, and saw him grinning and blushing at her, and knew that he was honoured by her introduction.


	11. Kyo

Hi! New chapter! Hope you guys like it! Read and review, okay? Thanks!

Oh, and thanks for all your reviews! You guys really made my day!

* * *

Chapter 11 Momiji grinned. "Hey, a chibi Kyo! How are you?"

"Hi . . ." Natsu replied, shyly.

"Who's Kyo?" Gaia asked curiously. "Is he the cat?"

"Yup," Momiji replied. "My family was cursed as well. I was the rabbit."

Natsu nodded. "Just like big sister Gaia."

Momiji smiled. "Yup," he said. "Hey, let's sit down." He showed them into his sitting room, and then went to the kitchen to get drinks. He soon returned with drinks and some snacks. "Here, help yourselves."

"Thanks," Gaia took a sit. "You live here on your own?"

"Uh huh," he nodded.

"Then how do you get your meals?" She asked curiously.

He grinned sheepishly. "Well . . . mostly instant noodles. I'm not that good at cooking. Though I have been eating out a lot more since meeting you. The food here is nice, though I still can't stomach kimchi."

Gaia just had to laugh. Unlike most Koreans, she couldn't stomach kimchi. It must have been due to her English blood. "Me neither."

Natsu was looking around the apartment. It was quite cute to see him looking around, feigning disinterest, when actually, he was quite curious. How very like a cat, Gaia thought fondly. He is so much like one.

The apartment itself was rather small, with a living room, washroom, study, and bedroom. However, Momiji had decorated it in such a comfortable, cheerful way, that it seemed to reflect his cheerful personality.

The first thing Gaia noticed that the whole place was decorated with rabbits. There were soft toy rabbits on the table, rabbit cushions on the sofas, even a little rabbit clock on top of the television set.

Momiji noticed them all looking around, and grinned. "Actually, this place is rented," he said. "All of the furniture was already in here, all I did was to dust and clean the house, and decorate it."

Gaia laughed. "They're so cute! The rabbits, I mean. You really must love them. Wow, you've done a really good job with it. You'd feel cheerful every time you step in. I would love to live somewhere this cheerful."

"Thanks," Momiji replied, blushing. "I'm not sure how I'm going to get all these rabbits home though. Guess I'll just have to buy an extra bag then."

"With rabbits decorating it?" Gaia teased.

"Yup!" He grinned. "Rabbits are cute, don't you think?"

"Well . . ." Gaia trailed off. "You would like rabbits if you stopped turning into one."

"Actually," he admitted. "I loved them even when I was cursed. I just can't hate them, they're too cute."

"Oh," Gaia nodded. "Still, I really like your apartment. It's so nice and warm." At that moment, she felt a little tug on her shirt. She looked down, right into Natsu's wide eyes. "What's wrong? You want to ask him something?" he nodded.

Natsu looked up at Momiji. He was still inclined to be nervous, but somehow, there was something about Momiji that seemed to put him at ease. He was just so friendly.

"Um . . ." he began shyly. "Your . . . family was cursed as well."

"Yup," Momiji replied. He was still smiling, but his eyes had somehow turned sad.

"My mama was Japanese," Natsu said. "Her last name was Sohma, so when I heard that it was also your last name, i wanted to meet you because I wanted to meet someone from my mother's side of the family. My father's side of the family . . . are not very nice so I was hoping that my mother's side would be nicer."

"True," Momiji replied. "It's because you're the cat, isn't it? You are a nice boy, it's just that your family cannot except . . . what is in you."

"The true form," Natsu said sadly, fingering his red and white beaded bracelet.

"Yup," Momiji agreed. "It's quite sad, isn't it? By the way, is it possible to meet your mother? I should be able to recognise her if she is part of my family."

Natsu looked upset. "My parents died in a car accident last year."

"What?" Momiji looked up, horrified. "Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry! I really didn't mean to hurt you. I didn't know. . ."

"It's okay," Natsu said. He was quite embarrassed actually, this was the first time someone outside the zodiac had apologised to him. "I'll bring a picture next time to show you."

Both of them were silent for a while, each in his own thoughts. Gaia felt a bit restless, the tension in the room very evident.

Finally, Natsu said, "I guess this means that I won't be accepted in my mother's family after all. They're cursed as well, and they certainly won't want another cat." He looked down at the floor. "Doesn't matter anyway, since I'm going to be locked away soon."

"Actually," Momiji admitted. "It is true that our cat was treated very badly as well. However, his behaviour during his confinement inspired the respect of all around him. At first, it was just us zodiacs, but as time went on, more and more people began to respect him. He is very much admired in our family now. Being a cat doesn't mean that people will hate you for the rest of your life. When they start to realise who you are, your strengths and qualities, I'm sure they'll start respecting you too."

Natsu looked up hopefully. "You really think so?"

"I know so," Momiji replied. "I've seen it before."

"How long was he confined?" Natsu wanted to know. "Is he still confined?"

"Nope, he's free now, now that the curse is gone," Momiji grinned happily. "Now I can give people bear hugs." Unfortunately, he now reflected, he couldn't give bear hugs to the one person he wanted to, because she was the one who turned into a rabbit, not him. It was pretty ironic. "Oh, and he was confined for about . . . twelve years. He's thirty now."

Natsu gasped. "Twelve years! That's a long time! How was he able to survive?"

"I'm not sure, I never really saw him after he was locked away. We were not allowed to see him." He paused. "Sometimes, though, I would sneak to the dark room to see if he was okay." He had been curled up on the floor, chained so tightly that he could barely move. His appearance was shocking, because he had lost so much weight, and there was blood on the yukata that he had been wearing. However, when he noticed Momiji's shadow on the floor, he had looked up, and both of them stared right into each other's eyes. It was so sad, Kyo's eyes had once been full of life, but now, they were filled with helplessness, pain, and hunger. Momiji felt like he was about to cry. He watched as Kyo finally turned away, holding his hands over his face, as if pleading with him not to look at him anymore. Momiji had finally managed to back away. He ran all the way back to his room, and cried the entire night. "I felt so helpless, I couldn't help him. At least he's free now . . ."

"How did the curse end?" Natsu asked.

"I don't' know," he said. "I left before it ended. The only time I knew it ended was when I bumped into someone, and I didn't transform. And then, a few days later, I got a letter from Kyo telling me that the curse had ended and that he was now free, and recuperating. I was really happy. However, if I'm not wrong, I think one day, it'd just end. I'm not too sure though." Tohru probably made him write it, Kyo normally hated writing letters.

"Oh," Natsu nodded. "I'm glad that your family is happy now."

Momiji smiled. "Thanks." Sadly, even though the curse might be over, some of the scars were still there. Momiji would still not have a mother, and Kyo would still bear scars from his terrible confinement. Still, one must think positively.

Gaia had been silent throughout the conversation, but now, she spoke up. "Our curse is about to end. I can feel it. You may not even have to be confined," She said to Natsu.

"I hope so," Natsu replied. "I want to leave and find somewhere where I know I would be accepted."

"I totally agree," Gaia added. For her, she knew that her mind was made up, she knew what she wanted to do. "Natsu, can you do me a favour?"

Natsu looked up. "Hum? Sure."

"Whatever you do, don't repeat this conversation we had." She paused. "The head could get very angry with both of us. And please, do not repeat what I am about to say."

"Okay," Natsu said.

"Thank you," she said to him. Then, she turned to Momiji. "I have something very important to tell you."


	12. Guilt

Hi! 12th chapter already! Aren't i fast? (Just joking!) Hope you guys like it! Read and review, okay? Thanks!

Hang on, it's going to be a wild ride after this. Exciting parts coming up, so keep reading!

Ps. I am very pissed off . . . Czechs and Koreans didn't make it. Oh well, can still support them next world cup. Unfortunately, Pavel Nedved will be retiring after this! I'll never see him ever again . . . sob sob sob . . . I'm so sad . . .

Oh well, hope you enjoy this chapter!

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Chapter 12

Gaia took a deep breath and looked straight into Momiji's eyes. "I have decided to go with you to Japan."

"Really?" Momiji had never been so happy in his life. He was literally grinning from ear to ear.

"However," Gaia continued. "I have to warn you that I'm actually going against the wishes of my family. If they ever find out where I am, they would probably drag me back."

Momiji looked solemnly at her. "I promise to do my best to protect you. I won't allow any harm to come to you. I really won't."

Gaia smiled. "Thanks. It really does make me feel better knowing that you'd be protecting me."

Momiji grinned again. "I really am happy that you'd want to come to Japan with me." He would be so lonely without her, he knew it. After what happened after she broke up with him, he knew that he'd really miss her. "I'd be so lonely without you."

Gaia blushed. "Me too," she admitted. "I'd rather get into trouble with my family than leave you. It's a decision I made on my own."

"I'm just curious," Momiji said. "How did you manage to go against your head? When I was still cursed, no matter what I felt, I just couldn't go against mine." He shuddered slightly, remembering what had happened when he had tried to protect Tohru from Akito at the summer house. He didn't succeed; Tohru still got injured by Akito anyway.

Also, he was not able to help Kyo throughout his confinement. He had just left him there, lonely, starving, and in pain, just because he couldn't go against the head's wishes.

If he hadn't been able to help Tohru and Kyo, what made him think he could protect Gaia? His head dropped into his hands. Maybe this was too dangerous for Gaia.

"What's wrong?" Gaia asked worriedly, sensing his change of mood.

He sighed. "It's just that . . . I've never been able to protect anyone. I'm too weak. I would try my best to protect you but . . . I'm not sure whether my best is good enough . . ."

Maybe, that had been weighing him down all these years, watching his friends suffering and unable to do anything to help them. Perhaps, that was what changed him, made him so unsure of himself.

It was as if he was using his cheerfulness as a mask over his own incompetence, guilt, and weakness. Sure, he was able to cheer people up, but what about himself? Who would cheer him up when he needed it? Normally, he would be able to cheer himself up, but after all that had happened, he lost that ability. He was not the happy go lucky, cheerful sixteen year old he had been, and he was too far gone to ever go back to the way he was.

What should he do now? After realising this, where should he go from here?

Gaia moved closer and placed her hand on his shoulder. "Its okay, nobody's perfect," she whispered. "It is still a comfort to know that you'd be doing your best to protect me. It's wonderful to know that you care this much for me. Even if things go wrong, even if I'm dragged back, I'll still know that you care for me, and that you have done your best. Of course, I would fight, I won't allow myself to be dragged back."

She reached out and took his hand. "I still want to go to Japan with you. All my life, I have never been free. I have always been under my parents, and now, under the head. None of them allowed me to do what I really wanted to do. The only reason why they allowed me to study music in the first place was because Quan managed to convince them. They actually wanted me to study business, and that's the last thing I would want to do. This is the one chance I have to change my future, to escape with the one I love, to be free. To tell the truth, if you had not appeared, I would not have wanted to leave. I would just stay here alone for the rest of my life. You were the one who set me free." She turned red and made a face. "Okay, now I'm starting to sound like those sappy love movies. Well . . . it is true anyway."

Momiji smiled at her. "I understand where you're coming from," he said. "Thank you." No more words were needed. Both of them understood each other well enough. Both of them just there quietly, holding hands, just enjoying each other's company. Gaia rested her head against Momiji's shoulder (he blushed again), and sighed contentedly.

"So when does our plane leave? " Gaia asked after a while.

Just hearing the word "our" made his heart leap with happiness. "In a few weeks" he answered. "Then again . . ." he looked around. "I guess I better get started now, I do have a lot of things to pack."

"Like these rabbits?" Gaia teased.

Momiji laughed. "Yup, like these rabbits."

"I guess I better not bring that much with me," she said. "They'll start to suspect. I'll just bring my most precious belongings."

"Okay," Momiji said. "You better not pack that early as well, they'll also start to suspect. Maybe just a week before we leave, or later if you don't have too much to bring."

"Where do I meet you then?" she asked. "And when exactly do we leave?"

Momiji grabbed a piece of paper and scribbled down the exact date and time that they would be leaving. Gaia took it and looked at it. "Just meet me an hour before the departure time," he replied. Then, "I'll order a ticket for you."

"It's okay," she replied. "I'll go and order it myself. Besides, you really shouldn't spend so much money on me."

Momiji looked at her. "Better not," he replied. "Won't they start to get suspicious if they find out that you have been ordering plane tickets?"

She turned red. "Oh, yeah. Never thought of that."

Oh well, enough time to say a proper goodbye to everybody she knew. Or maybe, she'd better get Quan to say the goodbyes. Once again, her family members would start to suspect if they heard that she had been saying goodbye to people. She felt awful, leaving everybody behind without saying anything, but she knew that she had no choice. It was not safe for her to do so. She wanted to go, and knew that she would have to except whatever consequences there were, and this included not telling her friends.

She glanced at her watch. "Guess I better go back now," she said, reluctantly. "I'm supposed to have lunch with the head today."

Momiji's eyes widened in shock. "That's so scary!" he yelped. "He won't hurt you, would he?"

"Only if he has reason to, which I think he doesn't. Not yet anyway," she replied. "He's been keeping a tighter rein on me ever since our confrontation last . . . time. Oh well, after a few weeks, I won't have to see him anymore." She smiled at that. "I think its better that we not see each other until we are about to leave."

"Good idea, though I do hate that," Momiji made one of his unhappy faces, which made Gaia laugh. "Isn't it exciting," he asked her. "We'll be eloping! Just like in the movies!"

This made Gaia laugh harder. "Yes, we will! And, I'm looking forward to it!"

Momiji gestured at Natsu, who was sleeping on the sofa. He did look cute when he slept, with his head to one side. "Better not forget him."

"Yipes," she yelped. "I forgot about him!" She looked at him. "No wonder he was so quiet, he was fast asleep." She walked over to him and shook him. "Wake up, sleepyhead, it's time to go."

Natsu blinked sleepily, then quickly sat up. "I-I'm really sorry," he stammered. "I didn't mean to be rude . . ."

"It's okay," Momiji replied, kindly. "You did look tired anyway."

Momiji waved them off, and Gaia and Natsu returned home. They barely spoke, both of them were deep in thought, and neither dared to ask the other what they were thinking.

After lunch, Gaia returned to her room. Lunch had gone surprisingly well. The head had asked her where she had been and she had told him that she went walking with Natsu. It was partly true anyway, because both of them did walk. She just didn't mention that they walked to Momiji's apartment.

Gaia looked around her room. She already knew what she wanted to pack. She decided that she would bring her music scores, books, photo albums, and, of course, that picture of Momiji, and the soft toy rabbit that Quan got her for her birthday. She would miss Quan, but at least the rabbit would remind her of Quan.

She sat down and started writing letters. She would pass them to Quan and tell her to give them out after she left. She did owe her closest friends an explanation, and it would be rude to leave without explaining to them.


	13. Memories

Hi! New chapter! Hope you guys like it! Read and review, okay? Thanks! 

I'm really pissed off, Czech Republic and South Korea got kicked out in the first round! What the hell happened to them? Isn't Czech Republic supposed to be 2nd in the fifa ranking? You can tell there's something wrong with the fifa ranking if a team ranked 2nd can't even get into the top sixteen.

Oh well, since my favourite teams have all been kicked out, i don't have to bother to watch the world cup anymore. Besides, exams are coming anyway, won't even have time to watch even if my teams made it.

By the way, i just bought the latest fruits basket manga, and i almost had a heart attack when i saw Momiji in the guys uniform! He looked so grown up! Though the effect was soon spoilt when he carried his rabbit bag and sang about ice-cream.

Momiji is so hot in a guy's uniform . . .

Oh well, enjoy the story!

Ps: Akito will be coming quite soon . . .

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Chapter 13

A few days passed, without Momiji and Gaia seeing each other. Needless to say, both of them did miss each other, but knew that it was too risky to try meeting.

Besides, Momiji was really busy with his packing. Somehow, he ended up with far more luggage that he had brought over, and was obliged to buy a new suitcase. He also bought a bag covered with rabbits so that he could bring his rabbits along.

His packing went along fine, and he managed to cram everything inside. It was literally a miracle, and Momiji couldn't help feeling pleased with himself.

Meanwhile, Gaia managed to finish her letters, and she hid them in her drawer, meaning to give them to Quan later, and tell her how to go about distributing them.

She waited until just a day before she was due to leave, before she started packing. She quickly packed what she planned to bring, and was quite pleased to see that it was not such a big bag that she couldn't manage to carry. It did look a little big, but if anyone asked, she planned to say that she was meeting a friend, and that they were going to the beach. She packed an extra pair of clothes along with her belongings, and set aside her beach clothes to wear. She would change at the airport.

Gaia was so excited; she could barely keep from singing. She was so happy to leave her horrible family and run off with the man she loved. However, she did feel a little scared. What if something went wrong? All would be lost. Her heart was in her mouth. It was an exciting time, and a scary one as well.

True to his word, Momiji ordered another airplane ticket for her. He was lucky that the seat next to him was empty, and that Gaia was allocated that seat. He himself was so excited and happy, he had to keep the utmost control over himself, or else he would be jumping all over the apartment.

It was a calm before the storm.

That morning, Gaia called Quan and asked if they could meet for dinner, because she wanted to tell her something. Quan had agreed. She then left for work. When she came back to get the letters, they were gone. She searched all over her room, hoping that they would somehow turn up, but they were nowhere to be seen.

The next thing she knew, she heard a knock on her door. She opened it, and saw that one of the serving people was standing there. He left, and to her horror, the head was standing there, calmly smirking. He held up her missing letters, stepped forward, gripped her arm tightly, and led her back into the house. He closed the door behind him.

Natsu had seen enough. He had been going for a walk outside, and he saw the entire thing. His heart in his mouth, he turned and fled towards Momiji's apartment. Momiji was an adult; he would know what to do.

Momiji was reading the newspaper and he was quite startled when he heard a knock on the door. He opened it, and saw Natsu there. Natsu was panting heavily; he had run all the way here. When he finally lifted his head, Momiji was shocked to see that the boy had fear written all over his face. The boy opened his mouth to speak, but he could barely utter a sound.

Momiji brought him in, sat him down on the couch, and brought him a drink of water. Natsu drank the water, and after a while, he stopped panting.

"What's wrong?" Momiji asked him worriedly. "You look terrified."

"Big sister Gaia's in trouble," Natsu replied, his voice shaking. "Please, help her. Come with me to the estate."

Momiji's eyes widened in horror. Immediately, he grabbed his coat and wallet. "Is she . . ."

"Please, come," Natsu repeated. Momiji nodded quickly, flung on his coat, and after they both got out, locked his door. Natsu grabbed his hand and started running again.

Somehow, they ended up at the estate. Momiji had no idea how. All he knew was that he had run as fast as he could, desperately hoping that they would be in time and that the head had not abused Gaia too much.

Without warning, Natsu pulled him into a clump of trees. Then, he pointed at one of the nearby houses. "Big sister Gaia's house is over there."

"Thanks," Momiji replied. "Um . . . so I . . ."

"Be careful," Natsu whispered. "The servants will be watching. I'll wait for you here."

Momiji squeezed Natsu's shoulder to thank him again, and slipped out. He had no problem getting past the servant and into the house, because even without the spirit of the rabbit, he could still step soundlessly.

Cautiously, he checked everywhere, but Gaia was not to be found. Finally, he found the bedroom. It was closed. Momiji was just reaching out to open the door when suddenly, he heard a huge slap. And then another, and another.

Then, he heard a cry of pain, followed by sobbing. Momiji wanted to do something; he knew that Gaia was inside there, and that she was in pain. What should he do? Go for help? Yeah, right, nobody would want to get into trouble with the family head.

Then, the head spoke. He had a low threatening voice, and it made Momiji's heart thump with fear. He was obviously able to inspire fear into his subjects, mainly because he was so heartless. "So, who do you think you are? Do you think I would not punish you because you're a member of the zodiac? That I am too soft and kind, and easily taken advantage off? Do you seriously think you can disobey me and get away with it?" He laughed. It was not a cheerful laugh. It was something else altogether, a terrible hint of malice. "I'm going to have to teach you a lesson."

Then, he heard Gaia. "Please, not that," she whispered, her voice shaking with fear. "Don't . . ."

Momiji not stand it any longer. The head was about to hurt her! He would not allow that to happen, even if he meant himself getting hurt in her place. He grabbed the doorknob and twisted it. The door gave way, and he almost fell into the room. The head whirled around to face him, eyes gleaming with malice, a whip in his hand. Behind the head, Gaia was crouched on the floor, staring at him, her eyes wide with fear and relief. He noticed, to his horror, that her cheeks were bruised and swollen.

Momiji was almost rendered paralysed by the head. He was tall and skinny, with black hair cut quite short. He looked to be in his early twenties, and was dressed in normal, western clothes. He looked rather unremarkable, but it was his eyes that scared people the most. He could literally see hell-fire in those black orbs.

Momiji was not without his resources, however. Normally, Momiji wasn't an angry person. In fact, he had never lost his temper in his entire life. However, it still was possible, and if it happened, people had better watch out. Like right now, for example. He glared right back at the head, hands clenched into fists. "Don't hurt her."

The head just gave a sadistic laugh. "You are you to order me around? And, I assume that you must be the young fool that she has been seeing?"

"Don't hurt her," he repeated.

"We'll see," the head snapped. "Guards, take him to the main house. You," he spat, glaring at Gaia. "Come with us."

Two of the guards grabbed Momiji's wrists and pinned them behind his back. He tried to struggle, but the guards were too strong. A third guard grabbed him by the hair, violently yanked his head down, and forced him forward.

It was in this manner that they made their way to the main house. His wrists were beginning to ache from the pressure on them, and he felt as if his hair was being pulled out by it's roots. They entered a dark room, and the guards forced him to his knees. The head stepped in, followed by Gaia. She was so pale, so scared. He desperately wanted to make her feel better, but the guard was still forcing his head down. He tried to lift his head up, but the guard exerted more strength, so finally, he gave up. His head was starting to hurt as well.

The head murmured a few words to one of the guards, and the guard disappeared. He soon appeared with a young girl of about fifteen. She looked scared. Gaia's eyes went wide with fear. She moved towards the head, but the head violently pushed her against the wall. Then, he turned towards the other girl. "Erase his memories."

Momiji understood. This girl was obviously the dragon. In a way, she did resemble Hatori, and he wondered whether she turned into a seahorse like Hatori. He really did not want to have his memories erased. However, there was one thing Hatori had told him, but he wasn't sure whether it worked. After all, Hatori had never tried to erase his memories before. "Um . . ."

"Shut up!" the head screamed, giving him a hard slap across the face. His cheek burned. "Erase his memories. Now!"

The young dragon really didn't want to, but she knew that she had no choice. She glanced at Gaia, who had her hands over her face, her entire body shaking with sobs. She glanced down at Momiji, who looked like he desperately wanted to say something.

The head grabbed her shoulders and forced her on her knees in front of Momiji. "Now!" he hissed.

"I'm sorry," the girl whispered. She really did not want to do this. She really did not want to end it this way, but she had no choice. She raised her hand. Momiji tried to twist his head way, but he could not, the guard was still grasping his hair. He tried to free his hands, to struggle, but once again, the guards were too strong. He was held immobile, helpless to save Gaia or himself.

It happened again, he had failed once more to protect the ones he loved. The girl's hand reached up to cover his eyes, and after a brilliant flash of light, his world turned black.


	14. Banished

Hi all! My next chapter! Hope you guys like it! Read and review, okay? Thanks!

I got quite a lot of reviews for my last chapter, though some i didn't really understand. Thanks anyway! It's really nice to get reviews from you guys, really! Keep reviewing, okay? You guys really made my day! Thanks so much

I am still really shocked that France beat Brazil. Also, i changed my precepts on the English team. After seeing David Beckham sick and still playing, i'm starting to like the English team. Just in time, because they just got kicked out.

Oh well, looks like no more Brazil vs England, huh? So sad.

Oh well, read and review, okay? Thanks!

* * *

Chapter 14

Momiji opened his eyes, and quickly shut them again. The light was too bright, and they hurt his eyes. His wrists and head felt a bit sore, and he had a terrible headache.

Finally, he managed to open his eyes. The first thing he saw was a girl with dark hair kneeling next to him. Behind her, a woman with bright yellow hair stood there, staring at the floor. Next to her stood a young man with short dark hair.

His eyes roamed around the room. He was in a lighted room, lying on hard floor, his coat lying next to him. Vaguely, he wondered where he was.

Then, everything came back. He pushed himself upright, and looked straight in Gaia's direction. She looked up, and met his eyes. She's okay, he thought in relief, he didn't hurt her.

His memories were actually intact! Hatori was actually right about this. After Momiji's mother's memories had been erased, Momiji had actually asked Hatori whether he could erase his memories as well. Hatori had told him that no, his powers did not work on zodiac members, and Momiji had been left staring despondently at his feet. Of course, seeing this, Hatori had comforted him the best way he could.

However, this time round, Momiji was actually glad that his memories were still intact. He would rather die than forget everything that had happened with him and Gaia.

"Well?" the head snapped. "Do you remember anything?"

Momiji tried to speak, but somehow, his throat felt dry, and he couldn't get a single word out. He looked at Gaia again, and this time, she was actually smiling in relief. She had understood what he had been trying to tell her.

The dragon spoke up for him. "Sir, I'm sorry, but his memories are still intact. I could not erase them."

"What?" the head growled. "How is that possible?" He grabbed Momiji by his shirt collar. "How is that possible," he hissed at him.

The dragon said, "My powers do not work on zodiac members."

"How can that be?" the head snapped. "I have all my zodiac animals around me, even that imbecile rabbit and monster cat! How is this possible?"

This time, the dragon looked at Momiji. She also did not know. Momiji cleared his throat, and finally managed to speak up.

"I-I was the rabbit," he stammered. "My family used to be cursed as well. I'm from Japan."

"You don't look Japanese," the head snarled.

"I'm part German," Momiji replied.

"Obviously, this is not working," the head snapped. "So, there are other cursed families as well. I never expected this. And you being the rabbit as well. No wonder you are attracted to her. I'm sure nobody in their right minds would go near her." Gaia flinched at his words. "Disrespectful little animal."

"That's not true," Momiji spoke up. "She is a really wonderful person and I'm glad to know her. I know that even if I hadn't been cursed before with the rabbit, I would still be attracted to her." He glared at the head. " You're the one who is more of an animal. Maybe if you weren't so possessive, you would be more human."

The head's eyes narrowed. His hand curled into a fist and he punched Momiji right in the jaw. Momiji immediately covered his jaw line protectively. He could literally feel his jaw line throbbing with pain. "You really do not have any respect for your betters, do you? Obviously, your family never taught you. It's about time I educated you. And since you're a zodiac, I can do anything I want to you, even if you're not from my zodiac." He turned to the guards. "Put him in that room."

Gaia's eyes widened in horror, "No," she whispered. "Please, don't . . ."

"You shut up!" the head screamed at her. "I've had enough of that insolent attitude of yours! So you think you can go against me, disobey my orders! Guards! Take him to that room! I'll deal with you once I'm finished with him!"

"Don't you dare hurt her!" this time, it was Momiji who spoke. However, it was too late; the guards were already pulling him to his feet, and dragging him away. The head followed, fingering an old, rusty key. Two of the guards stayed behind to make sure that Gaia did not run away.

He realised that he was being dragged away to a clearing. This place looked like it was barely used and visited, and a smell of decay hung in the air. There was a tiny stone house in the middle of the clearing, and they were heading towards it. The head unlocked the door and forced it open, the sound grating against all the ears present. The door was finally open and the guards pushed him into the room. The door closed again, and he heard the distinct click-sound of the door being locked.

The room was so dark, he could barely see anything. The floor was of hard stone, and the only light in the room came from a window behind him, covered by metal bars. He stumbled towards the window and stared out, but all he could see was grass and walls. He tried the door, but the door was locked. It was deathly quiet, the only sound coming from beating of his heart. The room was completely bare, except for a small bucket in the corner of the room. There wasn't even something soft to sleep in. Everywhere, it was cold, hard stone.

He knew what this place was. It was the room that the cat would be sealed in every generation. And he knew that he would be a long time before he would finally be let out. He would not be able to protect Gaia. He was so nervous for her, he had no idea what the head was planning to do to her. Despondently, he dropped to his knees and covered his face with his hands.

The head stalked back into the room where Gaia was waiting. She was staring down at the ground, hardly daring to look up.

"You," the head spat. "You are always disobeying me, going against my orders. I'm sick of even seeing your face. Form now onwards, you are banished from this compound. Go and live anywhere you like, but never come here ever again." He grabbed her by her hair and forced her to look up at him. "The next time I see you in this compound, I'll torture your precious German rabbit right in front of you," he snarled. Then, he let go of her and pushed her violently away from him. "Guards, escort her out."

Gaia was stunned. She could barely think of anything to say. Finally, she just bowed and backed away before the guards could touch her.

Within five minutes, she was out of the compound. She had lived here for the whole of her life, and she was banished from it, never to come back ever again. Her heart ached within her, and she felt confused, unable to think. What was she supposed to do now?

Momiji! He was still inside! The head had locked him in the cat room, and who knew what they would do to him. She was just about to run back in when Quan stalked towards her. "Quan," she cried. "Momiji's inside, we have to. . ."

Quan looked tired. "There is nothing we can do to help him. Unless . . ."

Gaia grabbed her arm. "What?"

"You have to go to Japan," Quan replied. "Seek help from his relatives. They would know what to do. Here," she dug into her handbag and pulled out a chequebook. "How much does it cost to buy a plane ticket?"

"I don't know . . ." Gaia mumbled. "He bought a plane ticket for me . . ."

"Do you have the keys to his apartment?" Quan demanded. Gaia shook her head. Quan sighed. "Here," she ripped off a cheque and wrote down her particulars. "Write down whatever amount you need."

Gaia's eyes filled with tears. "Thanks," she whispered. "But . . . it's your money . . . I can't. . ."

"You can, because I tell you to," Quan replied. She handed over Gaia's passport and wallet. "You'll need these."

"Quan, thank you so much!" Gaia whispered. "You're . . ."

Quan grabbed Gaia's hands. "Look, I have to go now. Good luck!" She squeezed her hands, then turned and ran back into the compound.

Gaia stared after her. "Thank you," she whispered. Then, resolutely, she turned and walked towards the bus stop. She knew what she had to do, and she was going to make sure that she had the courage to do so. "For Momiji."

Somehow, murmuring his name brought new courage to her. "I'm going to get you out of there. I promise."

She rode on the bus all the way to the airport. When she finally got out, she ordered a ticket to Japan. The flight was about going to be in half an hour's time, so she got something to eat at the nearest food outlet.

When her flight number was called, she resolutely entered the aeroplane without even looking back.


	15. Loneliness

Hi! Latest chapter! Hope you guys like it! Read and reply, okay? Thanks!

I would like to mention that the curse is already over, for the Japanese zodiac, that is. How Gaia is to find her way to Momiji's relatives . . . will be revealed in the next few chapters.

Actually, I'm still wondering why I chose Momiji as my main character. I mean, I always thought the guy was a bit irritating. However, there are not that many stories on Momiji so I decided, why not? The plot for this story came about when I started wondering what would happen if someone other than Kyo and Rin were confined, and I thought, why not Momiji?

Thanks for all your reviews! You guys really made my day!

Oh well, hope you guys enjoy the story!

* * *

Chapter 15 

It was a cold night. Momiji could barely sleep, it was too cold. Shivering, he wrapped his arms around himself and curled up on the floor. It was cold, hard stone, and they dug into his sides. It was too uncomfortable, and finally, he pushed himself upright again. How he missed his coat! The last time he had seen it, it had been lying on the floor next to him, before the guards hauled him off into this room.

The least they could do was to return his coat. After all, it was a cold night.

He was supposed to leave for Japan the next day, but he knew that once the head had him here, he could jolly well be here for good.

His thoughts turned to Gaia. He was so worried for her! He could still remember the head's words, that he would deal with her after he was done with him, and he had no idea what he had done to her, because nobody came to tell him anything. What had the head done to her? He could still remember the whip in the head's hands, just about to strike her.

Involuntarily, his hands curled into fists. He wasn't even able to protect Gaia. The slightest protest had only brought him into this room.

If only he could see Gaia one more time! To know that she was alright, that the head hadn't harmed her. Knowing the head, though, he would never give him the chance.

He was so hungry! Natsu had called him just as he was about to go out for dinner, and so far, they had not even given him anything to eat. It would probably be a long time before they gave him anything to eat.

Was this what Kyo had gone through, for twelve long years? Unbidden, an image of his orange haired cousin rose in his mind. His cousin hadn't even had a blanket to cover him; he had been bitterly exposed to the cold, like Momiji now.

Cats were brave creatures. Momiji had no idea whether rabbits could be that brave.

Getting up, he stumbled over to the window, yelping as his hands came into contact with the ice cold bars. Despite the cold, he grasped the bars as hard as he could, and stared out into the real world. He had long gotten used to the smell of decay, it hardly bothered him now.

Thank heavens he hadn't been chained. He wouldn't be able to survive if his movements were restrained. Plus, he could see how much those chains had hurt his cousin. He had seen his cousin desperately reaching out to touch the sunlight, only to be held back because his chains were too short. The chains were tight and heavy, and his wrists and ankles and neck had long been scrapped raw, and he would flinch every single time he moved.

Momiji bit his lip and stared back into the dark room. He would try to be as brave as his cousin. His cousin had it a hundred times worse, and he had been able to survive. Resolutely, he left the window and curled up in a dark corner. It was less cold there, and somehow, he felt comforted. He finally dropped off to sleep just as the sky started to lighten, signalling yet another day.

He was startled awake when he heard the sound of the key in the lock. He stiffened involuntarily, thinking that it was the head, but when the door opened, it revealed a young man carrying a bowl of food. A young man with black and white hair.

He closed the door behind him and walked into the room. Then, he placed the bowl of food on the floor. He was about to turn to go, when something made him look back. Momiji looked so pitiful, staring at him from the corner with wide brown eyes, looking so much younger than his actual age. Finally, he made a motion with his hand. "Aren't you going to eat?"

Momiji nodded, but did not move. He felt so stiff and cold, and he felt hardly able to move. He tried to stand, but he ended falling back into the corner, where he curled up like a ball, refusing to move or say anything.

The ox looked at him for a while, then picked up the bowl and placed it next to Momiji. "You okay?"

Momiji nodded.

The ox motioned to the tray again. "Aren't you going to eat?"

Finally, Momiji spoke up. "I'll . . . eat later . . ." he mumbled.

"You should eat now, you'll feel warmer," the ox insisted. He glanced down at the bowl. "Though it may not help much."

Momiji himself looked into the bowl. It consisted only of scraps. They looked about a day old, and smelt horrible. However, it was food, and he hadn't eaten dinner the day before. His stomach growled loudly, and slowly, he reached out and picked up the bowl. He ate every single thing in that bowl before he finally put it down. It made him feel sick, but at least he wasn't hungry anymore. "Thank you," he whispered.

The ox smiled. "It's okay," he replied. Momiji sank back down on the floor again. He looked so sad; the ox felt really sorry for him. "Why are you here?"

Momiji shivered again. "I . . . got into trouble with the head . . ." His eyes widened. "How's Gaia? Where is she?"

"You know her?" the Ox looked surprised. "Oh wait, you're that German guy, aren't you? Gaia's mentioned you before. Somehow, I got the feeling that you two . . . liked each other."

"Is . . . is she okay?" Momiji asked. "Please," he pleaded. "You have to tell me! Where is she now? Did the head do anything to her? Please . . ." he bit his lip. "I'll . . ."

The ox sighed. "It's a bit hard to say. After the scene last night . . . she disappeared. I saw Quan running out of the building though. Maybe she might know something. All I know was that Gaia . . . disappeared. I haven't seen her since that last night."

Momiji's eyes widened in fear. Fear not for himself, but for Gaia. She had disappeared – who knew where she was now? Was she held prisoner? Did the head harm her? To his horror, he felt tears welling up in his eyes, and desperately, he covered his face with his hands, he couldn't have people seeing him cry.

The ox watched quietly. He felt awful, he had never seen anyone look so distraught before. The head . . . he was always like this. No wonder the zodiacs never dared to get close to anyone.

However, there was something about Momiji that put people at ease. People felt comfortable around him. He was completely opposite from the head. The fact that Gaia had fallen in love with him had threatened the head, and he could not have his zodiacs in love with other people other than himself. Hence, he had to get rid of Momiji.

Gaia herself was strong. She was strong and independent, and though she was terrified of the head, she could still make decisions despite her fear.

If those two were somehow able to unite, maybe the curse would end.

Unfortunately, Gaia had disappeared. He had no idea where she was, so it was impossible to unite these two. Maybe Quan would know something, after all, she was Gaia's best friend.

"If you like," he said quietly. "I could talk to Quan for you."

Momiji nodded, his head still in his hands. "Okay," he mumbled, his voice muffled. "Thanks . . ."

The ox looked at his watch. "Look, I gotta go. I'll try to see you again, okay?"

"Okay . . ."

The ox picked up the bowl and walked out of the room, locking the door behind him. The head's words echoed in his mind. That morning, before the head sent him off to feed Momiji, he had assembled all the members of the zodiacs before him.

"As you know," he said, "Gaia is under disgrace. From now onwards, she is banished from this compound and this family, and no one is to mention her name. Anyone caught doing so will be severely punished by me." His words inspired the utmost respect and fear on all present, and nobody dared to go against his words.

However, now, the ox knew that he had to help Momiji and Gaia get back together, and by this, end the curse. For, he heard rumours that when all the members of the zodiac turned against their head, the curse would end.

If there was one person who could cause this effect, it would be Momiji. He and Gaia loved each other, and both would do anything to protect each other, even if it meant going against the head.

As of now, nobody dared to go against the head, but all this might change in the near future, especially if everything went according to his plan.

With that, he left the building.

A few hours later, just as Momiji was dosing off, he heard the door unlocking again. He stiffened, and this time, his fears were realised. This time, it was the head standing before him.

Despite his fear, Momiji knew that the head knew about Gaia. After all, he was the one who said that he would punish them both. He took a deep breath, and demanded, "Where is she?"

The head glowered at him. "What?"

"Gaia. Where is she? Did you do anything to her?"


	16. Torture

Hi! My newest chapter! Sorry it took so long, had a lot of stuff to write. Thanks so much for all your compliments! I was really touched, i felt so loved . . . Thanks so much! I'll try my best to be as fast as possible, alright?

About this chapter . . . i wasn't sure whether i should put this up. I mean, it might be too graphic. It's always Kyo who is the one who gets all the torture, and i was afraid that you people would dislike this chapter . . . and someone said that Momiji was todelicate to be whipped around . . . so i was quite afraid of this chapter.

However, I decided to put this up anyway, and see what you people have to say about this! If you guys don't like it, i'll either delete or edit it, whichever you prefer.

Oh well, read and reply, okay? Thanks!

* * *

Chapter 16

The head glared down at Momiji. Obviously, Momiji's love for Gaia had made him fearless. It was about time he did something. He had to break him. Momiji was a threat to him; he threatened to break his beloved zodiacs away from him. He had to do something to stop this from happening.

He smiled. It literally radiated cruelty and malice. "You would like to know, would you?"

Momiji bit his lip and turned away. "What do you want from me?"

The head frowned. He knew what he wanted. He wanted to keep Momiji away from the rest of his beloved zodiacs. They would be torn from him, if they were ever allowed to meet him. The main reason why he let his ox see him was because he knew that his ox was always closed up and he would not allow anybody to break into him.

As for the rest of the zodiacs, they were weak. They were easily broken into, even though some might make it harder, but ultimately, he would be able to break into them. Gaia was obviously the weakest. It was best that these two did not see each other.

Yet, what should he do with him? Keep him here? The other zodiac family, from Japan, might want him back. For all he knew, they might even come over themselves to fetch him. He was in quite a tedious position.

He glared down at Momiji. "You've caused me a lot of problems, you know that? First of all, you break into our lives, uninvited. You're turned my rabbit away from me, who knows who else you might influence. You're not wanted here. Maybe, you should just go back to where you belong, but of course, you cannot do that, can you? Already, you're integrated yourself among my zodiac. All of them know about you, and I cannot erase you from their minds. Neither can I erase them from your mind. We are just too far to ever go back to the way things were, are we now?"

Momiji did not say anything. What could he say? That he never meant for this to happen? Things happen, whether you like it or not. Maybe it was fate that he was here, for all he knew.

"What, nothing to say?" the head sneered. "You're turning out to be pretty boring, you know. What Gaia sees in you, I do not know. You're not worth my time."

Momiji remained silent. He just stared down at the ground, unable to think of anything to say. Finally, he looked up. The head frowned. He did not like the defiant look in his eyes. Sure, he could see the fear in them, but he could also see defiance, and he did not like it. He fingered the whip hanging from his belt.

Momiji noticed the whip, and his eyes widened. He curled up protectively, hoping that he would not be hurt, yet knowing that what he was going to say next was going to cause just that.

He looked up at the head. "If you're so afraid that the zodiac would be torn from you, then maybe your bond is not strong enough."

The head glowered at him. "What the hell are you saying?"

Momiji's throat tightened with fear, but he forced himself to speak. "You're ruling them out of fear. It's not that they love you; it's because they fear what you would do to them. That's why they follow you."

The head's eyes flashed with anger. Hardly knowing what he was doing, he pulled out the whip and gave Momiji a hard slash across his shoulder. Momiji had no time to cry out or prepare for it. Blood soaked into his shirt, and the wound started to sting. He gritted his teeth, determined not to scream. He curled up protectively, hoping that the head was done with him, that he would leave him alone. It . . . really hurt.

"You need to learn some respect." The head remarked. He grabbed him by the hair and forced him forward, then began to violently whip him. He was determined not to cry out, but every single slash made it harder. He wanted so much to just curl up and die, to be left alone. Desperately, he tried biting his lip, but the pain forced him to bite harder, and his lip started bleeding. The pain became too much for him to endure silently, and from time to time, he would cry out.

It seemed like forever, before the head flung him back against the wall. He cried out in pain, hardly able to hold it in anymore. It hurt to move, it hurt so badly that he wanted to scream. He didn't want to give the head any satisfaction, but it was getting harder to hold in his pain.

The head stood back, looking at him with disgust. "Weak," he smirked. "Next time you are rude to me, you'll get it even worse." He turned and stalked off, locking the door behind him.

Momiji lay on the ground, gasping with pain. He glanced at his shirt, and saw to his horror that it was covered with blood. He hated blood – the sight of it made him sick. He almost vomited, except that he had nothing to vomit out.

The pain was more than enough to drive him crazy. It was already agony being whipped, but now that his wounds were being exposed to the cold air, they stung terribly. The whip had already slashed strips in his shirt. Thank heavens it was only his back and shoulders that were wounded. If it had been his whole body, he would have gone crazy from the pain long ago.

The hard stone floor was digging into his already raw back, so, gritting his teeth, he pushed himself upright. He cried out from time to time, because of the pain, but finally, he was upright.

For the rest of the day, he did not move. It hurt too much to move. It was agony just sitting still. The cold air stung his wounds, forcing him to gasp in pain from time to time. He was beginning to ache from sitting in the same position for such a long time, but he preferred the aches rather than the sheer agony of moving. He desperately tried to think of other things, but the pain, and soon, the hunger, made it hard to concentrate.

Other than those scraps the ox had given him, he hadn't eaten the entire day. His stomach growled hungrily, and he felt weak and headachy. His stomach also started to hurt from lack of food. He pressed his hand against his stomach, hoping to lessen the pain, but it didn't work. Instead, it made him feel nauseous, so he removed his hand.

The silence was killing him. He hated silence. Normally, when he was alone, he would turn on the radio, or start singing one of his favourite songs. He couldn't now, because he didn't have a radio, and he certainly didn't feel like singing.

Now, the only thing he could hear was his ragged breathing, and beating heart. He wondered how long he would be able to last in this silence before it finally drove him mad. He wanted so badly to speak to someone, to be comforted, but he knew it was not possible now. He felt so lonely. He knew what it felt like now, to be lonely, starving and in pain. However, he felt too numb to even shed tears.

He stayed awake the entire night. It was impossible to sleep, with the pain of his wounds, hunger and aches. He wished so much to be able to sleep, but it was impossible. He stayed in that same position, the entire night, until finally; the sun was high in the horizon.

By that time, he was so exhausted. He ached all over, and the aches were almost as bad as those whip lashes. His hunger was extreme; he felt as if he could eat anything they were to give him, even cockroaches. He couldn't take it anymore; he just had to lie down. Slowly, he lay down on his side, carefully making sure that his whip lashes did not come into contact with anything. He was so exhausted, the moment his head touched the floor, he fell asleep.

His dreams were colourful, to say the least. He found himself back at the old Sohma compound, in his old room. He stood there, gazing around, and then reached out to touch a rabbit. It was just a dream, he didn't feel anything, but still, at least he could enjoy its comfort one more time. It was his room, his own room. The one place he always went to when he felt down, and could always rely on to give the same, simple welcome.

Suddenly, like a shock of cold water, he woke up. He stared around the room, at the hard, cold stone floor, the one window through which weak light streamed through, covered with iron bars. He felt the dull pain of jagged edges cutting into his raw flesh.

It was then that he broke down. Ignoring the pain, he curled up into a ball and sobbed. He was alone; nobody could hear him or give him the comfort he so desperately craved for. He kept sobbing until finally, he fell asleep again, this time, into a dreamless sleep.


	17. Japan

Hi! New chapter! Hope you guys like it! In this chapter, we'll be meeting two main Sohmas, just to let you know. Yay, we get to meet some of our old friends!

Thanks so much for all your reviews! You guys are really good at reviews, you know that? Thanks again! You guys really made my day!

Actually, I really like Akito, and the main reason why i like Akito is because she's so conflicted. I mean, she is really sad as well. I'm sure not all Akito fans are sadistic, they probably like her because of the above reason as well.

My fave teams are Czech Republic and South Korea, but i don't really mind Argentina as well, and i was quite sad to see them get kicked out. The only thing i don't like though, is their jersey, because it reminds me of my secondary school uniform . . .

I like all the teams, though I am not that much of a fan of Italy and France. Don't really like them. However, i'd rather Italy win because it'll be cool if they won despite that scandal. Anyway, i'm not going to bother to watch the finals.

Oh well, read and reply, okay? Thanks!

* * *

Chapter 17

When the plane finally landed, Gaia stepped out on wobbly legs. She was relieved that the plane didn't crash. She had always been scared of plane rides, after reading about numerous plane crashes, and this was her first time on a plane. At least it didn't crash. It would be horrible if it did. She would just die on impact, if she weren't thrown out of the window or if she didn't hit her head on something.

And Momiji would be locked in the cat room for the rest of his life, probably wondering where she was, worrying about her, all alone . . . it was too horrible to think about.

Momiji. She was here to get help from his relatives. Suddenly, she couldn't get out of the airport fast enough. It seemed to take hours to have her passport stamped and her luggage checked, before she finally made it out into the busy streets of Tokyo.

She wondered aimlessly for a while, wondering what to do, and whether she should ask for directions. She was so scared, what if that person didn't understand her? What if he or she gave her a weird look? How would she deal with that?

It was too scary asking for directions. However, if she didn't, she'd be wondering the streets of Tokyo for a long, long time . . .

Momiji's family used to be cursed. Maybe if she looked hard enough, she would find someone with orange hair, or black and white hair, or grey hair . . . but then, she had never seen a family who had had their curse broken before. Maybe their hair colour might have changed back to normal . . .

What a dilemma . . .

Finally, she decided that she had to ask for directions. She had to do this for Momiji; she didn't want him stuck in that room for the rest of his life. She felt so lonely without him, though. Momiji . . . she really hoped that he was okay.

Shyly, squeezing her two hands together nervously, she approached a stranger. However, the stranger was walking fast, and he had disappeared by the time she reached him. She glanced around, and found a young woman standing by a building. She just seemed to be staring into space. Gaia was too frightened to ask her.

Oh no, what if a man bumped into her! She had better stay alert. She would transform right in front of everybody, and they would know the secret . . .

Finally, she managed to stop another young woman. She was quite well dressed, obviously on her way to work. "Excuse me," she began shyly. "C-can you speak English?"

The woman looked at her strangely. "Yes, why?" she asked, warily.

"Um . . . I was wondering whether you could tell me where the Sohma family can be found."

"I don't know any Sohmas," the woman replied. "They're one of those high class, influential families." She studied Gaia. "Are you foreign?"

"Yes," Gaia replied, shyly.

"Hm . . . wait here," the woman wandered off into a bookshop and came out with a map. "Here, you should find the Sohma family compound on the map."

"Thank you!" Gaia grasped the map. "How much did the map cost? I can pay you . . ."

The woman waved her off. "Don't need, it's free. See you around," she waved and walked off quickly.

"Thank you!" Gaia called after her. However, her voice was too soft, and the woman was too far away to hear anyway.

Gaia opened the map and looked inside. Sure enough, there it was – the Sohma compound. It was the same size as her family compound, except that it looked grander and was done in the traditional Japanese style. However, when she checked her position, she almost dropped her map. It was almost at the other end of Tokyo!

Well, she had no choice, she just had to walk. She did not have any Japanese yen with her, having forgotten to change her money at the airport because she was too busy hurrying out, so she couldn't take any transport. She might as well start walking now, otherwise, she'd take forever to reach the compound.

She started walking. She walked for a few hours, stopping to rest at a few locations, and consulting her map. She felt exhausted. When she checked her map at her last rest stop, she realised that she was only halfway to the Sohma compound, and that it was still a long distance away.

Then, her greatest nightmare was realised. It started to rain. It wasn't just a light drizzle, it was literally showering with rain. She was drenched in seconds.

She felt so stupid, in her rush, she had forgotten to buy a raincoat. Tucking her arms around her slight frame, she began walking again. Oh well, at least she wasn't sweating anymore. She felt self conscious, wondering what people would think, a soaking wet woman with blond hair walking the streets without an umbrella.

She tucked her head down, to shelter her face from the storm. It was starting to grow dark. As she walked, she glanced up from time to time, looking to see that she was headed in the right direction. There were quite a number of apartment buildings, and as she looked into them, she began to wish for a nice sheltered place to rest. She envied all those people in the apartments, warm and dry, while she was stuck outside in the heavy rain.

As she walked, she felt as if her feet turned to lead, and that she couldn't take another step. She hadn't eaten the entire day, and she felt as if she could have eaten two horses. Her stomach was starting to hurt, and she was aching all over, having walked the entire day. However, she forced herself to go on. It was for Momiji's sake, she told herself. She had to go on.

Soon, it got to a point where she couldn't go on anymore. She was far too weak. She collapsed on her knees, and suddenly, with a loud poof, she transformed. Oh great, that was the last thing she needed. Maybe she should use this time to rest. After all, if this went on, she'd die of exhaustion. After considering what to do, she finally crawled into her clothes and peered out, watching the passer-by's.

Then, just in front of her, a car stopped, and someone got out. She couldn't see the person's face, but by his clothes, she knew that it was a man.

Suddenly, she felt herself being lifted. She tried to struggle, but she was too weak, and finally, she just lost consciousness. However, the last thing she saw was bright orange hair and a beaded red and white bracelet, and she knew that she was safe, and that she had found someone else from Momiji's family. She couldn't remember his name though. She remembered Momiji talking about him, but it seemed so long ago. So many things happened after that, and hence, she had forgotten his name.

When she came to, she found herself in a dark room, snuggled into a comfortable bed. The room was dark, but warm and cosy. She felt herself, to see if she was wearing any clothes, and found that she was wearing something soft and silky. It was probably a yukata, though she wasn't too sure, and anyway, it was too dark. Comfortably snug and warm, she drifted off to sleep again.

When she next woke up, she found that it was day. Strangely, she still felt tired and slightly headachy. She reached up to feel her forehead, and realised that there was a cold, wet cloth resting on it. She lifted it and placed the cool side back on it before snuggling deeper into the blankets. As she did so, she looked around the room, and almost sat up in shock.

There were rabbits everywhere. Soft toy rabbits on the table, dresser, even the end of the bed. Only one person would be this crazy over rabbits . . .

She saw her wallet on the bedside table (in front of a purple rabbit) and picked it up. She looked through all the compartments, until she finally pulled out the picture of Momiji. She smiled at his picture, then looked around the room. This room had obviously belonged to Momiji when he lived here, it was just so him.

Her smile faded. Momiji was locked in the cat room. He was sleeping on cold hard floor while she was comfortably resting on his bed. She pushed herself upright and got out of bed. She still felt groggy, and had to lean against the bedposts. She was just about to walk out of the room when she heard a woman's voice.

"Eeep! You're still ill! Please, go and lie down! I'll come in soon, just let me prepare something first!"

Gaia had to smile. She sounded so flustered, it was cute. She lay back down and waited for her to come in.


	18. Tohru

Hi! My next chapter! Sorry for taking so long . . .

Thanks for all your reviews! Seriously, i really am touched that you would take the time to review! So guys, this story is dedicated to you. Hope you guys like it!

To Mikyoung Kim: Thanksso much for your Korean names! Yay, now i can use them for my future characters. I still have to name my ox and dragon, and if new characters come up, i'll use these names as well. Thanks again!

To FlyingFleshEater: Hi! Wow, your rabbit is really cute! Thanks for the rabbit!

To Haschen: Wow, your reviews are always the longest! Thank you so much for taking so much time to review my story . . . teardrop and happy smile

To all those who have put me on their favourite and alert lists: Thank you so much! It really means a lot to me to know that you like my story!

Oh by the way, I'm thinking of changing my pen name. By the time the next chapter comes up, I'll have a new name, cos my present one sounds a bit . . . weird? So yeah, if you see this title but with a different name than "Alngirl" . . . It might be me.

See yah! Read and review, okay? Thanks!

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Chapter 18

Finally, after waiting for a few minutes, she came in, with two children tagging behind her. She looked slightly older than Gaia, with dark brown hair tied back in a ponytail. She did not look spectacular, but she did look so cheerful and kind that Gaia immediately took a liking to her. The children, though, just stared at her. They did look quite sweet, though.

She sat down next to Gaia, and slipped a bowl of soup into Gaia's hands. "Drink this," she said. "It's nice and hot, and it'll make you feel better."

Gratefully, Gaia gulped it down. It had been a very long time since she had something to eat, and she was starving. The soup tasted really delicious, and in a few minutes, she finished it. She looked around the room. Strange, how did she get here? The last thing she remembered was lying in rabbit form under her clothes, and something about orange hair. She turned to the woman by her side. "How did I get here?"

The other woman smiled. "My husband picked you up and brought you here!. He was just going for a drive around when he found you." She hesitated. "You were a rabbit . . . by the way, my name's Tohru! What's yours?"

Gaia smiled. "My name's Gaia. I'm from South Korea, and my family is cursed as well. I turn into a rabbit every time I get hugged by the opposite sex, or fall ill. Thanks you for helping me, I . . ."

"It's okay," Tohru told her. "Wow, so you're the rabbit. Just like Momiji."

At that moment, the door opened again. This time, it was the same orange haired man who had picked Gaia up. Tohru immediately stood up and flung her arms around him. "You're back!"

He made a face. "Yeah, kids were awful today. I don't know how master can take it, teaching a bunch of brats like that." He looked down at Gaia. "Oh, she's awake."

Tohru grinned. "Yup! By the way," she said to Gaia, "This is Kyo. He's my husband, and we've been married for one year! Isn't he cute?"

Kyo blushed. "Yeah, well . . ." he mumbled, embarrassed.

Gaia looked up at him. Wow, so this is Kyo, she thought. Natsu would have loved to meet him. He was rather tall, but he was so thin he looked more like a beanpole. She remembered Momiji telling her that when he had been locked away, he had been treated very badly. No wonder he lost so much weight. He must be really brave. Momiji really looked up to him.

Momiji! Gaia bit her lip. She was still so far away from Momiji. Kyo and Tohru were definitely nice people, but she missed Momiji so much. She couldn't help wondering if she was intruding on their kindness. Plus, maybe they didn't want to be reminded of the curse . . . and Kyo would certainly be reminded of the cat room . . . after all, he had suffered so much there . . .

She looked up at them. ""Um. . . thank you for taking care of me."

"Nah, it's okay," Kyo replied. "I was surprised to see that you were a rabbit, though."

"Her family's cursed," Tohru told him. "She's the rabbit".

Kyo looked stunned. "No way, I thought we were the only ones cursed!"

"Me too," Gaia said. "Until . . ." she stared down at her hands. Suddenly, she felt shy. She wanted so badly to get them to help Momiji, but suddenly, she couldn't think of what to say about him. She looked to the end of the bed, and saw the multitude of rabbits sitting there. "Does anyone live here?"

Tohru grinned. "Oh, that's our rabbit, Momiji! He used to live in this room before he went to South Korea!" Her grin faded slightly. "We're all very worried about him, though. He should have been back a few hours ago, but he seems to have disappeared. He would normally have told us if his flight was delayed, but so far, we haven't heard anything from him. I do hope he's okay . . ."

Gaia bit her lip. She really felt like crying at the mention of Momiji's name. She knew why Momiji couldn't communicate with them. She missed Momiji so much! Yet, she couldn't tell them about him, she felt too shy. What if they blamed her for his imprisonment . . .

Tears filled her eyes. She took a deep breath, trying to hold back her tears. Tohru immediately realised that something was wrong. "What's wrong?" she asked. "You . . . look really upset."

Gaia took a deep breath. It was now time to tell them all she knew. "I . . . I know what happened to Momiji."

"Really?" Tohru asked excitedly. "You know him? That's great! How is he?"

"Not good," Gaia answered. "He's . . . locked in the cat room. That's why I'm here in the first place; I came here to seek help from his relatives." She glanced down at her hands, which were shaking.

Kyo looked really shaken. Obviously, his confinement in the cat room still scared him. "Poor guy," he mumbled. Even though Momiji really irritated the hell out of him sometimes, he really didn't want Momiji to suffer. He, of all people, should know what confinement would do to people, and he knew that Momiji would certainly be broken by the confinement. Momiji was such a people person . . . he always loved to be around people . . . he would definitely be broken by the time they managed to rescue him.

Tohru looked upset. She turned to Gaia. "Don't worry, we'll try to get him out, but first, you have to rest, you're still sick."

Gaia bit her lip. "I . . . can't rest until I knew that he is safe."

"By the way," Kyo interrupted. "How do you know Momiji anyway?"

"We . . . we were dating for a while, then the bead found out about us. He . . . was very angry . . . that's why we have to save him," she cried, starting up, only to lose her balance and stumble back onto the bed. "Who knows what the head would do to him."

"You're still ill," Tohru told her. "You have to rest now. Don't worry, we'll think of something to get him out of there."

Gaia nodded exhaustedly. She felt awful, and headachy. She held her hand to her forehead, and realised that it was really hot. Obviously, she had a fever. It must have come from walking the streets of Tokyo in the rain. Tiredly, she nodded and snuggled under the blankets again. She fell asleep the moment her head touched the pillow.

Kyo and Tohru watched her sleep. "Poor Momiji," Tohru murmured. "Locked in the cat room . . ."

"She obviously likes him," Kyo replied. "She said so." Both of them stood there for a while, lost in thought.

"Maybe . . . we should see Shigure about this?" Tohru asked hesitantly. "He should know what to do."

Kyo groaned. "Great, not that hentai. He'll probably make some stupid perverted comment that'll get him punched by both me and that damn rat." He sighed. "But then, there's not much else that can be done. Here," he said. "You take care of her, and I'll go see him."

"Okay," Tohru replied. Kyo bent and kissed her cheek, before grabbing his coat and fleeing to the main house.


	19. Akito

Hi! Hope you guys like this latest chapter! Read and reply, okay? Thanks!

Thanks for all your reviews! You guys really make me feel really happy knowing that people outside are reading my stories and enjoying it! Thank you so much!

Oh, and this is my new pen-name. I used to be called Alngirl, but i changed it to LadyAlina because it sounds grander. Kind of piraty, isn't it? Besides, it was my friend who thought up this name, because she wanted to include me in her Van Helsing flic, and i decided to use it.

Sorry about all the typos! I guess i was in a rush, and i forgot to check properly! I promise i won't make this mistake again, and i'll check more throughly. Hope this is better . . . I'll try to edit my last chapter when i manage to find the time.

Oh well, hope you guys enjoy this!

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Chapter 19

Some time later, Gaia woke up again. This time, she felt much better. As she looked around the room, she realised that there were two little girls standing next to her bed. The moment her eyes landed on them, the elder stepped back shyly and continued looking at her.

"Hello," Gaia said, smiling shyly. "How are you?" The two girls were so cute! One of them was just a little baby, while the other was a toddler. Both of them had the same coloured hair as Tohru, as well as the same sweet smiles. The older one looked more like Tohru, but the younger one looked like Kyo.

At that moment, Tohru entered again. "Oh good, you're up!" she grinned happily at her. "These are my kids! The older one is named Kirra and the younger one is named Kyoko, after my mother!" she smiled blissfully. "They really are cute, aren't they? My mom, she would love to see them . . ."

Gaia smiled. "Yup! They're so sweet! How old are they?"

"Kirra has just turned one, and Kyoko is just one month old!" Tohru smiled. "We're so glad to have them, and Kyo's so gentle with them! I just love the way they play together!" She sighed then, looking rather sad. "Kyo really deserves to be happy; he has gone through so much."

Gaia nodded understandingly. After all, she still remembered what Momiji had told her about Kyo. However, just thinking of Momiji made her miss him all over again. When would she finally be able to see him again? And, after a prolonged time of solitude, would Momiji still be the same man she had fallen for?

"You really miss Momiji, don't you?" Tohru asked softly. She paused, took a deep breath, and then continued. "I'm so worried about him. Momiji is . . . well . . . he's really cheerful, and he can really cheer you up when you feel unhappy. And when I think of him inside the cat room . . . going through what Kyo had to go through . . ." She looked down at the floor. She was so worried about Momiji, and she had tried to remain calm about it because she knew that Gaia felt even worse than her, and that she would upset Gaia even more. She knew that there were tears in her eyes, and that they were threatening to overflow in a few seconds, so she quickly started thinking happy thoughts. Or rather, trying to. She had been as reassuring as possible, but failed to reassure herself, much less Gaia.

Gaia couldn't trust herself to speak, because she was sure that she would burst into tears, so she just nodded. Tears were already welling up in her eyes, and she had to turn her face away. She really did not want to cry in front of other people.

"Oh, I'm so sorry for making you cry!" Tohru gasped, horrified. . "Really, I didn't mean to! I'll . . . the others are outside, and they want to speak to you about Momiji! Don't worry, they care about Momiji as well and they would help us to save him! Do you want to talk to them first or wait until you feel better?"

Gaia considered. She wasn't sure. On one hand, if they came in now, they would see that she had been crying. However, if they came in later, she would have to wait before telling them, and every single minute wasted would really hurt Momiji. She took a deep breath, and wiped her eyes with her yukata sleeve. "I'd like to see them now, please. As soon as possible."

Tohru smiled. "Okay, I'll go and call them!" She turned and left, and a few minutes later, she arrived with Kyo, and three other men.

The eldest had normal, dark coloured hair, but the other two had very unusual hair colours. One of them had grey hair, while the other had black and white hair. They looked to be about Kyo's age. They were obviously ex-zodiacs, and since the eldest one was with them, she wondered whether he was an ex-zodiac as well. She couldn't help smiling when she noticed that Kyo was frowning at the grey haired man. Obviously, both of them were enemies. Who could blame them? After all, they were the cat and rat.

Tohru happily introduced them to Gaia. "This is Shigure, Yuki, and Hatsuharu, also known as Haru," she said, pointing to each one of them. "They're Momiji's cousins, and are very concerned for him!" Then, she introduced Gaia. "This is Gaia, she's from South Korea, and like Momiji, and she's the rabbit. She's cursed as well. She knows what happened to Momiji, and she wants to save him."

"She's the rabbit?" asked the grey haired man who had just been introduced as Yuki. "Did our curse pass to them when it ended?"

"We have always been cursed," Gaia told him, softly. "We've been cursed for such a long time, none of us know when it even begun."

"Oh," said the black and white haired man, who had been introduced as Haru. "Just like us, except ours has already ended. You know Momiji, right? How do you know him?"

"We . . . we were dating for a few . . ." Gaia stammered, only to be interrupted by Shigure.

"Really?" Shigure asked. "Ah, young love, young love . . . how inspiring . . ."

The other three glared at him until he finally quietened down. "Don't mind him, he's just being an idiot," Yuki muttered, crossly. "He never even acts his age, much less, as a family head."

"Hey, I resent that," Shigure said.

Gaia looked stunned. "Really? He's the family head?" Oh help . . . if he were the family head . . .

"He's been the family head ever since he married Akito," Kyo remarked from his position on the floor. He hesitated, and then went on. "You would have expected him to be more mature and responsible but no . . ."

"Speak for yourself, baka neko," Yuki interrupted. "You . . ."

"You want to take this outside, rat boy?" Kyo snapped.

"Guys," Haru stated in a bored tone. "You still act like children, you know that? Momiji may be really suffering at the moment for all we know and you guys are still acting like children." He turned to Gaia. "Sorry about them. They always act like this when they're together. So . . . how's Momiji? You said you wanted to talk to us about him?"

"Yes . . ." Gaia took a deep breath to calm herself down. She couldn't help feeling shy in front of all these people, but she knew that she had to tell them about Momiji, no matter their reaction. She proceeded to tell them about Momiji's incarceration, and the events that led up to it. "That's why I'm here," she finished. "I came here to ask you to help us."

The reactions of the other three were worth remembering. Shigure and Yuki turned completely white, unable to utter a single word. Haru, on the other hand, was trembling. He clenched his fists, desperately trying to hold in his temper.

"Of course we would!" Shigure said immediately. "Momiji is really dear in our family, and we'd do anything in our power to make sure that he doesn't come to any harm." He paused. "I'm going to south Korea to talk to the family head. Anyone wants to come with me?"

"I would," Kyo and Yuki said at the same time. However, both of them were so worried about Momiji that they never even noticed that they had said the same thing at the same time.

That was when Haru completely lost it. "Who the hell does he think he is!" he growled. "What gives him the right to break up couples like that, and treat Momiji like that! I'll come along, because I'll be there to break his neck, and anyone who dares to stop me had better be prepared to die!"

Gaia looked terrified. Of course, nobody blamed her, because black Haru was, after all, terrifying.

"Right, as long as you promise not to destroy the plane between your . . . fights," Shigure said to Yuki and Kyo, who both turned red. Then, he looked at Haru. "Calm down, being black is not exactly helping matters, you know."

Haru glared back at him. He was about to say something but Shigure turned to Gaia. "If you like, you can stay here with Tohru-chan, and we'll come back with Momiji the moment we find him."

"No," Gaia whispered. "Please, I would like to come along too. You might need me to show you around. And . . . I would end up worrying my head off if I weren't doing something to help."

"Yes, it would be wise to let her come along," came a new voice from the doorway. It sounded a little low and husky, but still, definitely female. All eyes turned to the doorway, and there, framed against the open door, stood another woman. Her hair was much longer than it originally was, and she still looked frail. However, she was still stunningly beautiful. Also, ever since the curse ended, she had started to wear woman's clothes, ever since Shigure got her a few sets the moment she said that she wanted to be a woman again. After that, they married. They had always loved each other, and now that the curse was over, they could finally proclaim their love to each other.

Gently, Shigure took her hand and led her into the room. "This," he said to Gaia, "Is Akito, the loveliest woman in the entire universe."

Gaia stared at her. She couldn't help it. She knew it was rude to stare, but she couldn't help it. There was something about Akito that seemed to attract the rabbit spirit in her. And, wasn't Akito a male name? It made both of them uncomfortable, and both looked down at the floor. "Hi," Gaia said finally.

Akito nodded to her. She was about to speak, but decided not to. Instead, she turned to Shigure. "Take us both with you. If you need to speak to the head, maybe I would be of use. And, it would be good if all members of the zodiac in South Korea were together."

"Okay," Shigure replied. "We'll leave . . . tomorrow morning. Pack tonight, and Akito and I will order the plane tickets." He smiled down at Gaia. "Don't worry, we'll pay for you. Sohma treat, for Momiji's little flower!"

Gaia turned a fiery red, while Kyo and Yuki smacked Shigure on the head on the way out. Haru, who had finally turned white, just rolled his eyes and followed.

Meanwhile . . .

Momiji felt tired and lonely. He had just been fed, so his hunger pains had been slightly abated. A few hours ago, guards had marched into the room, pulled off all his clothes, and poured buckets of soapy water over him. It made his wounds smart, but at least, he was now clean. Then, they flung a towel, underwear and yukata at him, before leaving the room, locking the door behind them. Momiji dried himself the best he could, pulled on the pair of boxes, then reached for the yukata. It was a warm yellow, and it came with a black sash. He slipped on the yukata and tied on the sash, admiring the soft feel of the silk, and wondering at the same time why they gave him something Japanese to wear when they kept referring to him as German. He went back to his corner, curled up, and closed his eyes.

He hadn't spoken the entire day.


	20. Cats

Hi! My lattest offering! Hope you guys like it! Read and review, okay? Thanks!

Oh, and thanks for all your reviews! I'm really glad you guys like my stories! I'll be writing more, so look out for that!

Well . . . hope you guys like my story! I do hope i haven't made anybody too OOC though . . .

To Rae-elfin-warrior: Thanks for your reviews! However, to clarify the Argentina thing, i was just replying to Aqua's review. However, surely not all Argentines are that bad, right? Certainly not as bad as my head . . . My favs are still the Czechs and Koreans anyway.

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Chapter 20

"Ah, lovely South Korea, where my heart . . ." Shigure sang loudly, earning weird looks from fellow passengers. They were just climbing down from the plane, having landed in South Korea just moments ago.

"Shut up, Shigure, you're irritating the hell out of all of us!" Kyo yelled.

"Ah, please, calm down . . ." Tohru waved frantically.

Yuki rolled his eyes. "They're always like that, Ms Tohru. Don't mind them; some things just never change, do they?"

Haru just sighed. "Don't mind them, they're all just being idiots," he told Gaia.

For the first time in what seemed like ages, Gaia smiled. "I don't mind, really, it is quite funny," she said with a laugh.

The flight itself had been uneventful. It didn't crash, of which Gaia was eternally relieved of. Before the flight, she had sent a message to Quan to tell her that they were all coming to South Korea.

Quan sent back a message that she would take care of their accommodation, so she did not have to worry about that. When Gaia told Shigure, he was relieved that they did not have to worry about accommodation. However, Akito had asked, "How is she going to manage that?"

"Don't worry," Gaia had replied. "Quan is very resourceful."

Meanwhile, the others had quickly settled pressing issues. Tohru had asked Kureno and Arisa whether they could take care of Kirra and Kyoko, and both immediately agreed. Kyo had been sulky about this, because he and Arisa did not really get along that well, but at least Arisa knew how to take care of kids.

Yuki and Haru had asked Machi and Rin respectively whether they wanted to come along as well, but both declined, saying that they had better remain to take care of the kids.

The remainder of the night was spent packing, and for Kyo and Tohru, nursing Gaia back to health. In fact, Gaia was still feeling ill now, but at least she felt better. Yesterday, she had felt really awful.

Gaia quickly looked around, and a second later, she was flying towards Quan. She flung her arms around her friend. "Quan, I'm so glad to see you! Thanks for all your help . . ."

"I'm just glad I could be of help," Quan replied. She glanced around. "Don't tell me those are the Sohmas . . ."

Gaia couldn't help laughing. "Don't worry, they're really smart and kind people, though sometimes, Shigure can act really drunk and Kyo's really hot-tempered."

"So where's the head?" Quan asked. Gaia pointed at Shigure. "Oh God, not him," Quan groaned. "He's the drunken one, isn't he?"

Gaia just laughed. She introduced Quan to the rest of the Sohmas. Quan was rather polite, but she did feel a little intimidated by Akito. There was something about Akito that seemed to call to the animal within her, and instinctively, she had the urge to throw herself on her knees in front of her. Luckily, it was a weak feeling, and Quan managed to ignore it until it disappeared entirely. The strange thing was that the first time she met her own head, the feeling was so much stronger, that she had already been on her knees before she knew what was going on.

How very strange . . .

This done, they ordered taxis, and headed for Quan's residence. It was quite a nice house, large and cosy. "I hope you guys don't mind, but I'm living with the cat and rat at the moment, so I apologize in advance if the house breaks apart," Quan told them as she was unlocking the door.

"Oh dear," Shigure said with a laugh. "That is a problem, because now we have two sets of cats and rats!" Everyone immediately looked at Yuki and Kyo, who glared back. Shigure sighed. "Oh well."

Quan recruited Natsu and Jung Yin to show them to their rooms, because she wanted to speak to Gaia privately. Shigure and Akito shared one room, Kyo and Tohru shared another, and Yuki and Haru were to share as well. Shigure had found it hysterical that Yuki and Haru were to be sharing, and only stopped laughing when Yuki threatened to throw him out of the house.

Quan would, of course, be sharing with Gaia. Once they were alone in their room, Quan turned to Gaia. "I'm so glad to see you again."

"Same here," Gaia replied. "However, I thought you lived at the main house? How did you end up living here? It is a nice house, though."

Quan smiled. "Thanks. Well . . . I got into trouble with the head because . . . he caught me talking to Momiji. He banished us to live here, though I have to admit, it's more of liberation than banishment. We just moved here a few hours ago, which is why we still have a few boxes lying around. We haven't fully unpacked yet."

Gaia's breath caught at the mention of Momiji. "You saw . . . Momiji?" She stammered. "How . . . how is he? Is he okay? Is he . . ."

Quan sighed and pondered over what to say to Gaia. Gaia twisted her hands nervously. It bordered ill to see Quan so hesitant. Something was definitely wrong. Gaia felt herself trembling. "He's . . . not well?" she finally stammered.

"Well . . . yes," Quan said finally. "He's quite weak, and has lost some weight. When I spoke to him . . . he seemed to be grasping the bars as hard as he could, as if to hold himself up. He's quite weak . . . but mentally, he's very strong." However, she just could not bring herself to tell Gaia that she was the one who had done all the talking – Momiji never even said anything at all. She still remembered the first time she had met Momiji in the concert hall. He had been quite talkative, and literally bursting with life. Now though . . . he seemed more dead than alive. Even his eyes were dull, though when she told him that Gaia was safe, they had lighted up again, and he had even smiled.

Gaia felt as if her heart would break. The thought of Momiji weak and in pain . . . she felt responsible. It was all her fault this happened in the first place. If only she had been more careful, they would not have met, and she would not have fallen in love with him, and he would not be suffering like he was now. It was all her fault . . . suddenly, she realised that Quan was saying something. "What?" she asked.

"He was asking about you," Quan patiently repeated herself. "He was obviously worrying his head off about you. I told him that you were safe, and that you were in Japan. He was so happy to know that you were safe. He was literally beaming all over. Then, the head caught us."

"What happened next?" Gaia asked worriedly.

"He banished me, along with Jung Yin and Natsu, to live here," Quan answered. "Momiji . . . I'm not sure what he did to him, though I can assure you that he didn't kill him."

Gaia's eyes widened. The head really knew how to abuse people – who knew what he would do to Momiji. "I have to see him," she said finally, with some difficulty.

"It's too dangerous," Quan replied. "We're both banished, remember?"

"I . . . feel so helpless . . ." Gaia murmured, slumping down on the bed.

"Me too," Quan replied, sitting down on the bed with a comforting arm around Gaia's shoulder. Gaia smiled sadly at her, and both remained, silently comforting each other.

Meanwhile, Natsu sat upstairs on the roof. He had talked to the ex-zodiac members earlier, and they seemed rather nice. With the exception of Yuki - he wanted to kill him the moment he saw him. He also felt uncomfortable around Shigure and Akito, around the latter, he felt very uneasy, because there was something about her that called to the monster within him, which made him want to throw himself on his knees in front of her. Luckily, it was a weak pull, and he was able to ignore it until it faded away. Shigure was just plain annoying. Haru was nice, though it was a little spaced out, and the way he sometimes acted around Yuki, one would think he was gay. Luckily, Haru's wedding ring, and the fact that Yuki was starting to get irritated, convinced him otherwise.

Tohru was really nice, she really reminded him of his mother – she was so kind to him, though he did think she was a bit of a space cadet. Kyo . . . he never really dared to talk to him. He felt so shy around him. He wasn't even sure about what to say to him, anyway.

At that moment, he heard a slight thump behind him. He jumped and spun around, only to see Kyo jump up onto the roof. He had not noticed Natsu yet, he was still staring around, admiring the view. Natsu held his breath; it was only a matter of time before Kyo noticed him. He gazed at Kyo, wondering why his hair was still orange, since the curse was already over. He touched his own orange hair, wishing he was that lucky.

Well . . . Kyo wasn't really that lucky either. He had been confined, and he must have suffered terribly because he now looked older that his actual age, and he was so thin. Natsu couldn't help wondering what he had gone through during his confinement, and how much it affected him.

Sure enough, he noticed Natsu. His crimson eyes widened a little in surprise, before nodding to him. "Hello," he said. "I didn't know this was your haunt as well."

Natsu turned red with embarrassment. "I . . . climb up here . . . when I want to avoid company. It's nice up here, and I can be on my own to think."

"You seem quite solitary," Kyo pointed out. He grinned sheepishly. "Yeah, I also hide up in the roof when I want to be alone. Still do, in fact. That's why I'm up here in the first place."

Natsu looked up at him. "Um . . ." he began shyly. "You want to sit down?" Normally, he hated it when people joined him on the roof, but since this was another cat, he didn't mind. Besides, he really did admire Kyo, and wanted to know more about him.

"Okay," Kyo replied. Natsu quickly moved to create a space for him, and he sat down with his arms around his knees. "The view is really nice here," he remarked.

Both of them were silent for a time, staring contentedly at the view. Finally, Natsu broke the silence. "B-brother Momiji really admires you."

Kyo flushed with embarrassment. "Yeah . . . well . . ." he shrugged. "Momiji is . . . locked away, isn't he?" he asked, with difficulty. It was just so hard to keep his nightmares over his confinement at bay, and the fact that it was not happening to Momiji . . .

"Yes," Natsu stammered. "And it's all my fault. I was the one who went to call brother Momiji to help sister Gaia, and now he's confined. "In the place meant for him, no less. The ox had told him all about what happened between his conversation with Momiji, and that was how he found out Momiji had been confined. Ever since then, he only had himself to blame. He told Kyo all about what happened, and what he had done.

Kyo looked at him. "There wasn't anyone else you could have gone to?"

Natsu thought about all the people he could have gone to. To tell the truth, he did mistrust the ox, because the ox seemed to be planning something all the time and Natsu didn't know whether helping Gaia was part of his plan. Quan . . . she would have cared so much about Gaia that she would end up insulting the head, and probably get into even more trouble than Momiji would have. Mei . . . she was a year younger than him, and he cared too much to call her. He . . . really did like her. However, since he was the cat, he wondered whether she would reciprocate. However, he wouldn't have gone to Mei for help even if he had wanted to. "No . . ." he finally mumbled.

Kyo looked over the view again. "It . . . wasn't your fault. What happened between Momiji and your family head. Still, it was good that you did something to help her."

"Yeah, but now brother Momiji is in trouble because of me." Natsu muttered.

Kyo turned to look at him. "It . . . was the best you could do . . . at that time. At the end of the day, sister Gaia had a lighter punishment because you were there to get her out of it. Don't blame yourself for it. Besides, we're here to help Momiji, and we would do our best to get him out of there, so you don't have to worry about him." He reached out and ruffled Natsu's hair. "Okay?"

Natsu smiled up at him. "Okay . . . Thank you . . ."

Kyo smiled back. "Nah, it's okay."

At that moment, they heard Tohru's voice. "Dinner!" she called.

"She's a really good cook," Kyo told Natsu with a slight blush. He always blushed whenever she kissed him, even though they were already married. "Come on, let's go down."

"Okay," Natsu replied. Both of them got up and climbed down from the roof. Natsu was smiling the entire time. He felt much better now.


	21. Shigure

Hi! My latest chapter! Really hope you guys like it! Read and reply okay? Thanks!

Oh, and thanks for all your reviews! I'm really so grateful, of course i'll write more!

To tell the truth, i'm really not sure how to channel Shigure. I mean, the guy's really unreadable at most times. It's easy to channel him at his irritating, perverted self, but when it comes to his serious, manupilative side, really, i have no idea what he's planning and why? All i know is that he loves Akito, hence, the ShigurexAkito parring. That's all i know about him.

Hope i didn't make Shigure too ooc, and that you'd understand if my channeling of Shigure turns out badly.

Till then, see yah! Next chapter should be out in three days, so watch out for it! Toodles!

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Chapter 21

Dinner was a nice, quiet affair. Tohru had volunteered to cook, and she was a wonderful cook, as Kyo had mentioned earlier. After the usual dinner complements, everybody eagerly fell to. It had been a long day, and all were hungry. However, the only person who was not at the dinner table was Gaia, because she was sick. She still hadn't fully recovered from her illness, so she decided to rest in her room. She was recovering quite nicely, and since it was just a common cold, nobody really needed to worry about her, though even though the others tried to reassure her, Tohru still was.

Quan, however, had to have the last word. When she found out that Gaia had walked for quite a while in cold, pouring rain, she literally screamed at her. "For heaven's sake!" she screamed. "Are you crazy? Running around in the rain like that! You could get pneumonia and die!"

"Okay, okay," Gaia reassured her. "I won't do it again. At that time, I was in a huge rush because I wanted to see Momiji's family as fast as possible . . ." She just couldn't tell Quan about how she had forgotten to change her money or buy a raincoat – it was too humiliating and besides, Quan really would kill her. It was just too embarrassing.

Quan sighed. "You shouldn't have done that – Momiji would be even more upset if you ended up with pneumonia. Oh well, at least you didn't get it this time. Next time, think first, okay?"

By that time, Gaia was really sleepy. She nodded contently, and fell asleep in the next second. When Tohru called to say that dinner was ready, Quan had tucked Gaia in, turned off the light, and went downstairs.

Shigure and Akito also had been having a quiet talk of their own. When they were shown to their rooms, the first thing Akito did was to open the window, and start unpacking. Shigure just sat on the bed and contentedly watched her. A nice, cooling breeze wafted through the window, and as a result, it was nice and comfortable – not too hot or cold.

Shigure watched as Akito puttered around the room, hanging up clothes, arranging knick-knacks, being busy, in general. Finally, Shigure took her hand and pulled her down beside him. "You really should rest, you know. You're still rather frail."

Akito contentedly rested her head on his shoulder. Sure, it was nice to relax and all that, but when you were idle, you would start to think. There were so many things to think about, and most of them were more negative than positive, and she wanted to avoid thinking of them.

The most pressing issue on her mind was the fact that she had made her zodiac suffer so much. They still had scars over what they had gone through, and so many of them were caused by her. Just looking at them arose a deep seated guilt in her. If she couldn't even forgive herself, what made her think that others would forgive her?

Though she tried to hide her feelings of guilt from the others, it still ate at her, if she somehow started thinking about it. Other than that, she was fine.

As for Shigure, she really did love him. She used to think that he loved her because of the curse, forced to because of the bond between them. When the curse was over, she realised that she did love him, but she did not dare to tell him. It would only tie him to her, and most likely, he would want to be free, now that the curse was finally over. Thus, she had been really stunned when he asked her to marry him. It turned out that both of them really did love each other, this was the true bond between them. Sure, the curse did create a bond between them, but this bond now seemed perfect to both of them, and none of them wished for it to be any different.

When Shigure first proposed to her, she had been stunned. He had come into her room just as she was about to sleep, and told her that he urgently wanted to tell her something. By that time, she was already wearing woman's clothes, and though she didn't know it, she looked really beautiful.

Shigure looked so serious; she was starting to feel a little scared. "What's wrong? Did – something happen?"

Shigure looked at her silently for a while, and then cleared his throat. It was then that she noticed that he looked more nervous than serious. Was – he scared of her?

Finally, Shigure took a deep breath, and spoke. "Well . . ." he looked straight at her. "As a matter of fact, yes, I do have a problem. I can't live without knowing whether you feel the same as me. I . . . really do love you."

Akito could only stare at him in shock. "What? But . . ." she stammered.

However, Shigure took this wrongly. "You . . . you mean you don't?" he asked, looking really hurt and upset. "Maybe I should . . ." he trailed off, preparing to stand up and leave. He really did look so despondent.

Before she even knew she did it, she had already grabbed his hand, appealing to him to stay. "I – I was stunned – that you would feel the same for me . . . I've always loved you, even after the curse ended. I thought that if I asked you to marry me . . . you would be . . . held back again. Just like what the curse did."

"You could never hold me back," Shigure told her. "If you didn't love me, I'd feel even more held back, because I'd still love you, and I'd never stop loving you."

Akito could feel tears building up in her eyes. "But . . . what I did . . . to the zodiac . . ."

"You were unhappy at that time," Shigure told her, gently. "None of us blame you for what you did. After all, it was the curse, and the bond, which made you do what you did."

Akito could only stare down at her hands. She felt moved to tears. Shigure . . . he really did love her as much as she loved him. This felt wonderful . . . it was as if she was in a dream.

"Great!" Shigure said happily. "Since you feel the same way as me, how about getting married?"

"What?" Akito stammered. "But . . . I'm still the head of the family. It is a big responsibility – and if I marry you, you'd be the head – and you'd be too busy to do what you really want to do. It'll hold you down."

"We can do it together," he urged her. "I mean, really, we'd be a great team together! If we do this together, we'd have more time for each other, and we'd be less stressed. Really!" he gave her his big puppy eyes. It was amazing – he was no longer the dog, yet he could still give his big, pitiful puppy eyes. "Besides . . . I'd feel really bad if you couldn't marry me . . ."

It wasn't such a big decision for Akito, really. It was the one thing she had always wanted. "Okay," she whispered, joyously. "I would want to marry you."

Shigure reached out and took her chin. Then, he leaned over and kissed her on the lips. She returned the kiss eagerly, tears of joy streaming down her face.

They were married a few days later. It was a huge, joyful occasion, and all celebrated. Shigure was sworn in as head of the family, and as he promised, he worked with Akito. As a result, even though the duty of the head was very taxing, they still had a lot of time with each other.

Well, now, in South Korea, they really did have to work with each other, otherwise Momiji would really suffer. "So . . . what do you think we should do?" she asked finally.

"I'll talk to the head," Shigure said immediately. "We should be able to come to an agreement. However, I do know that it's much harder than what I made it out to be but still, we do have to try."

"I'll come with you," Akito said immediately. "I was the zodiac head, and I would know what he would be going though. If I can talk to him, it would be much easier for me to convince him to see our point of view."

"Well . . ." Shigure pondered. "Okay, but I'd destroy him if he tried to hurt you."

Akito smiled and kissed him on the cheek. "I'll hold you to that promise, then."

Shigure grinned back at her and was just about to lean forward to kiss her back when Tohru called to say that dinner was ready. Embarrassed, both quickly made their way down.

Both of them were originally planning to discuss more after dinner, but Haru spoilt everything by initiating a conversation over that very topic. "So . . . what are we going to do about Momiji?"

"Well, you're in luck, Akito and I were just discussing this very topic!" Shigure was back to his joyous, rather irritating self. "We're planning to see the head, and we want to know whether there's any way we can send a message!"

"I could go and tell him . . ." Natsu began.

"Better not, Natsu," Quan replied. "You're the cat, and everybody knows that he really hates you. What about Jung Yin?" she asked, turning to him. "You're the favourite of the head, and I'm sure that he'd listen to you."

Jung Yin sighed. "Fine," he muttered. "Though I'm not that fond of him. What do you want me to tell him?"

"Just tell him that the Sohma's want to speak to him concerning Momiji." Shigure replied. "I'm sure he won't mind."

"You might as well go now, since you've finished eating," Quan told him. Jung Yin gave a dramatic, long-suffering sigh, then stood up and left the room.

The others heaved a big sigh of relief. Quan was happy to know that when Gaia asked her what happened later, at least she could tell her that they had done something to help Momiji.


	22. Message

Hi guys! My latest chapter! Hope you guys like it! Read and reply, okay? Thanks!

Thanks for all your reviews! I'm glad you liked the ShiggyXAkki pairing, it's my second favourite pairing. KyoxTohru is my favourite, by the way. No surprise there, because Kyo's my favourite male character, and Akito's my favourite female character!

I'm weird - my friend thought i was crazy when i told her I like Akito. Well, she likes Dracula, so who's talking?

To MeiLei378: Oops, i forgot to mention it! Yep, Quan's the dog. I wasn't able to illustrate it because Shigure couldn't hug her - Akito would kill him!

To JennyKim319L: Talk to him about Momiji's release, of course! Though it won't be easy, knowing the head's character. Oh well, the results of their conversation will come soon.

To FlyingFleshEater: Hey, that's mean! Poor Akito . . .

Oh well, next chapter would be coming in the next three days, so look out for it! Till then, see yah!

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Chapter 22

Jung Yin was rather cross that they had made him do this without asking first, and that he had agreed to do it so easily. Also, the fact that it was getting dark also added to his irritation. It really was a stroke of luck that the head had allowed him to live with Quan some years ago, and other than all those New Year feasts; he made it a point to avoid the head. True, as the rat, he was the favourite of the head, but the head was no favourite of his.

He grabbed his coat from the hanger by the door, and made his way to the main house, carrying the note that Shigure had given him earlier. He really hated the head – especially for what the head had done to him. The head had literally destroyed his family and forced him to live with him in the main house.

Jung Yin actually was very close to his parents and younger sister. They were a happy family unit. He knew that he was lucky, because at least he had a happy family. Most of the zodiacs actually had happy families, with the exception of Gaia, whose parents were so possessive of her that they did not let her any personal freedom, and Mei, whose parents had dropped her off at the main house before disappearing forever.

However, all that changed when the head demanded that he stay with him. His parents had tried to protest, but the head used Mei to erase the memories of his parents and sister, and sent them to live elsewhere. After that, Jung Yin became his manservant. The head sent him on all sorts of errands in all types of weather, and in addition to that, he was stressed out from school as well. If it weren't for Quan convincing the head to let him live with her, he would have ended up with a mental breakdown. He had already been on the verge of one.

He really did not want to go, because he was so afraid that the head would be reminded of him and hence, would demand that he come back and live with him. It really wasn't fair that Quan made him go without asking him whether he wanted to in the first place.

He had felt eternally grateful to Quan for saving him from the head, but really, she shouldn't have asked him. She herself knew that he was afraid of the head.

One thing about Quan, though, was that she took care of all those she really cared for, no matter the consequences. She appeared tough and cold to outsiders and people she was not close to, but when it came to the people she cared for, she really showed her true colours, by doing whatever it took to take care of them. He really admired Quan, and at least for her sake, he would do as he was told. Quan really did not mean for any harm to come to him anyway.

Personally, he felt that out of the Japanese zodiac that came to South Korea, he liked Yuki the most. Probably because Yuki was the rat, and probably because one look at each other, and they were already friends. It was as if both of them seemed to understand what the other was going through. Must have been a rat thing.

Suddenly, he realised that he was right outside the main house. He gulped, and was just about to open the door when it opened, illuminating the plump shape of one of the maids in the service of the main house. She bowed to him, greeted him good evening, and then slipped off in the direction of the cat house. He noticed that in her hand, she was carrying a small bowl of cold scraps. He was about to walk into the house, but suddenly, hardly knowing why, he turned and followed her to the cat house.

Why on earth, he wondered. Nobody could be living there, that irritating cat Natsu was, rather unfortunately for him, living in the same house as him, and the cat room was supposed to be meant for Natsu. He couldn't think of anybody who could be in the cat room.

Then, he saw a thin hand reach out from the bars of the wooden stack. The maidservant dropped the scraps into the hand, and the hand withdrew. The maid turned away and headed back to the main house. It was then that the rat reached into his pocket and withdrew the note that Shigure had written. Unfortunately, by that time, it was too dark to see anything. Jung Yin turned and headed back to the main house, thinking about what he had just seen, and wondering what on earth was going on.

Within minutes, he was kneeling in the front of the head, desperately trying not to shake visibly. The head leaned forward and gripped him by the chin, forcing his head up. "Why hello, my dear rat," he purred. "It has been a long time since I last saw you. I missed you, you know? Maybe we should meet more often." He let go of Jung Yin's chin to wrap his robes more securely around him. It was a very cold day.

Jung Yin just bowed his head, not daring to speak.

"What's wrong?" the head asked him. "Do I scare you too much?"

"Of-of course not!" Jung Yin stammered. "Um . . . I've got a message for you, from the other head of the family, from Japan. He wants to speak to you." He reached up and handed the head the note.

The head's eyes narrowed involuntarily. He grabbed the note and read it. Sure enough, the note had everything he had been expecting to see. He knew that this would happen, that the other family head demand that Momiji be returned to them. Most likely they'd ask him for Gaia as well, since both Momiji and Gaia really loved each other, and it would be inhumane to separate them.

Loved. Now that was a bitter word. It meant that Gaia was too taken up with her beloved German rabbit to pay attention to him. Momiji was a nuisance, and he had to be kept away from his zodiac.

However, he was loath to give Momiji away just like that, especially now that he did not have his rabbit with him, having banished her to live elsewhere. Originally, he had planned that she would be so heartbroken, having to be parted from her head, that, she'd even break off with Momiji and come back to him begging him to take her back in again. Obviously, she didn't. In fact, she'd even run over to Japan to get Momiji's family to help him! That little . . . traitor! She was going to pay dearly for this, and Momiji too!

Having Momiji in his clutches ensured obedience from Gaia. He was not about to give that up, since he finally had complete control over Gaia. If Gaia knew that Momiji would be hurt, she'd be completely in his control, because she would want to prevent it as much as it was humanly possible.

He clenched his fists in anger, and Jung Yin backed away in fear, sure that he would end up being the brunt of the head's anger.

However, his movements caught the attention of the head. "Well, my dear rat, how much do you know about this?"

Jung Yin blinked.

The head's voice sunk to just slightly above a whisper. "Do you have an idea why Gaia was banished in the first place?"

Jung Yin shook his head nervously. "All I know is that she was banished."

Now, there was an edge to the head's voice. "Don't fool with me, boy," he hissed. "I do know that you're living with Quan, and that Quan is supposed to be Gaia's best friend. I also know that Quan would be on Gaia's side in whatever she plans. Most likely, the whole group of them, plus the Japanese zodiac, are at Quan's house right now, and are planning something against me, probably to turn the rest of my beloved zodiac against me. What are they planning? Tell me!" he grabbed the boy's shoulders and shook them roughly. "Tell me!"

Jung Yin was so scared, he could barely think of what to say. Finally, he managed to squeak out, "I – I'm only their messenger! They told me to tell you, that's why I'm here in the first place! I'm not on anybody's side!"

"Fine, then!" the head growled. "Tell them, messenger that I do not want to have anything to do with them and that if I catch any of them on my premises, there'll be hell to pay. Go now!"

Jung Yin stood up, bowed quickly, and fled before the head could change his mind. He ran all the way back to the house, stopping only to push open the door and let himself in. Quan's eyes widened when she saw his state, and she quickly brought him some water. "You really shouldn't have run like that, you know?" she scolded him. "Look at you now, you can barely breathe! Will you try to be more careful next time!"

Jung Yin only nodded, desperately gulping down water at the same time. Finally, he managed to regain his breath. He told them everything the head had told him.

"The nerve!" Haru cried. Everyone turned to him, desperately hoping that he would not turn black. "He has no right to do that! Who does he think he is?"

"Haru's right," Shigure stated. "Tomorrow, I'm going to see him. It's far too late right now. I'll tell him that no matter what he does, Momiji's still part of our family, and he does not have the right to turn us away like that."

"I'll come with you," Akito replied. "I might be of use."

"I'll destroy him if he does anything to you then," Shigure told her. "Jung Yin, can you take us there tomorrow?"

"Okay," Jung Yin replied.

None of them noticed that Gaia was not in her room.


	23. Caged

Hi! My latest chapter is up, and i really would appreciate it if you read and reviewed. Thanks so much for all your reviews! I feel so loved knowing that people are reading and liking my stories . . . okay, sorry for being so sedimental.

Okay, next chapter coming up in three more days!

To JennyKim319: Well . . . i can't remember their last names either, so lets's just say that they have a last name, but it won't be in the story.

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Chapter 23

Gaia walked briskly in the direction of the main house, munching on an egg salad sandwich. After her long nap, she had felt much better. She got out of bed, changed into some clothes that Quan had set out for her, and made her way downstairs. It was a little embarrassing wearing Quan's clothes though, because in her opinion, they were a little too skimpy, but at least Quan got her something more decent than what Quan herself normally wore. Halter tops, jacket and pants were hopefully decent enough . . . though she did feel a little uncomfortable in halter tops. If her parents saw her now, they'd really kill her! She had to smirk at that thought.

She had decided to go downstairs for a snack, since she was starting to feel hungry. However, on reaching the landing, she heard voices. It was Jung Yin's voice. He was just saying that the head would not talk to any of them. She felt horrified – Momiji's life was at stake! Or at least, his sanity. The head was such a . . .

Her head reeling, she sank against the wall. How she missed Momiji! She had to see him, to hear his voice one more time. She missed his kind, gentle demeanour, and everlasting cheerfulness.

She knew Momiji must be lonely, shut into that small hut without anyone to talk to. Maybe she should try to talk to him; at least he would feel less lonely that way. And, she had to show him that at least, if nobody else did, she still cared for him.

Luckily, the others were in the living room at the moment. She quietly sneaked into the kitchen and grabbed four slices of bread. Two of which was for her, the other two for Momiji, since he would probably be hungry. She quickly spread egg salad on the bread, before packing one sandwich each in a plastic wrapper. She grabbed the sandwiches, stuffed them into her handbag, and sneaked out of the house. She felt guilty disappearing like that, but she really had to see Momiji so badly. Hopefully, they would not even notice.

On the way to the main house, she opened one of the wrappers and ate her sandwich. She felt less hungry, and was just finishing it up when she realised that she was just outside the gate of the family compound.

With her heart in her mouth, praying that nobody would notice her, she quietly slipped in. She moved towards the cat room, slipping into the shadows every time she heard a sound. She glanced around one last time to make sure that nobody was around, before dashing to the cat house. She did not dare to look into the window – afraid of what she might see. Finally though, she steeled herself, and looked into the room.

At first, she could barely see anything, since it was quite dark. However, she saw a flash of yellow on the floor, reflected by the light of the moon. Finally, the moon rose into the sky, and by its reflected light, she could see clearly into the room, and its one sole occupant.

Her breath caught in her throat, and she had to stifle back a sob. Momiji looked so vulnerable, almost like a little boy. He was curled up on the hard floor with his eyes closed. He looked so tired and sad. He was much thinner than the last time she saw him, and he was wearing a yellow yukata. His hair was slightly longer as well. How long had he been held here? She tried to count the days, but she wasn't sure how much time had passed by.

"Momiji . . ." she whispered, hoping that he would awaken and talk to her.

Momiji opened his eyes slowly and looked up at the window. His eyes widened, and he quickly jumped up and grasped the window bars with both hands. "Gaia! You're here!" he whispered excitedly, his voice slightly rough from disuse. "I missed you so much! Are you okay?"

"I should be asking you that," Gaia chided him gently. Her grin faded slightly. "You look so thin . . . and weak . . ."

Momiji looked embarrassed. "Well, I'm surviving. Besides, now that you're here . . . hey, don't cry . . . it's not your fault." He slipped one hand though the bars and gently wiped away a tear from Gaia's eyes. She grabbed his hand and held it to her cheek. "I missed you so much!"

"Same here," Momiji whispered back, squeezing her hand gently.

They remained there for several seconds, each enjoying the other's company, knowing that this would be for a limited time only. Both of them wished so much for those bars in the windows to just disappear, but both knew that it wasn't possible.

"Are you hungry?" Gaia finally whispered. "I – brought an egg salad sandwich . . ."

Momiji's stomach growled at the mention of food. He was fed only once a day, and on cold scraps. "Really? That'll be great – but . . ."

Gaia pulled out the other sandwich, opened it, and gave it to him. "It's okay," she told him. "I had already eaten one on the way here."

Momiji reached out a thin hand and took the sandwich. His stomach growled hungrily, and he literally gobbled it up. He tried to slow himself down, but after days of cold scraps and terrible hunger, it wasn't possible. It seemed like years had passed before he finally had something good to eat. He had already forgotten what if felt like to be full and contented, and what good food tasted like.

Gaia watched him eat, and once again, she felt tears prickling at her eyes. He looked so weak – as if he could barely support himself, and could just barely do so by clutching the bars of his cage as hard as he could.

Momiji finished the sandwich and turned back to her. "Thanks," he managed to whisper. He too felt tears coming to his eyes, so he quickly turned away. He felt so happy – even if the head whipped him until he was broken and bleeding, he would still remember this moment of comfort. He reached out and took her hand again, and she grabbed his. It had been so long since he had human contact with her, or hear her voice. He really missed her so much!

"So, how have you been?" he whispered. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, only that I'm too busy worrying about you," she whispered back. "By the way, I managed to . . ."

"Well, well, well," they suddenly heard a sneering voice from behind them. "If it isn't the two love rabbits."

Momiji and Gaia both froze. Gaia turned around, and gave a gasp of fear. There, standing before them with an angry expression on his face, stood the head. Both of them were so stunned with fear, they could barely say anything.

"I . . ." Gaia stammered. "P-please don't hurt him! This was my idea!" He'd already been hurt enough – she wouldn't be able to take it if he was hurt anymore. Besides, it was her that sneaked over in the first place.

The head streaked over and gave Gaia a hard slap across the face. If it weren't for Momiji's hand in hers, she would certainly have fallen. The head noticed this, and his eyes narrowed. "My dear . . . girl," he practically spat. "I did say that you would be punished if I ever saw you here again, didn't I? And yet, you still disobey me, like you always do."

"I had to see how he was," Gaia answered in a low voice.

"Then, I'll just have to teach you who's boss," the head snapped. "Do you seriously think you can go against me? It's all because of him, isn't it?" He pointed a finger at Momiji. "Before you met him, you were nice and obedient, a sweet, lovely girl. And now . . . you're so rebellious. Obviously," he paused. It actually did hurt to know that he was no longer the most important person in Gaia's life. He wanted to be important on the eyes of the whole of his beloved zodiac. Otherwise . . . it was no use even existing. They existed for him, not anyone else, especially not for Momiji!

Momiji noticed that the head seemed to be distracted for a while. He turned to Gaia and whispered, "You should go now."

"No!" Gaia whispered back. "I'm not leaving you with him!"

"He'll hurt you!" Momiji whispered. "Please, I don't want him to hurt you." Gaia seemed torn. She knew it wasn't safe for her to remain here, but she really did not want Momiji to be hurt again.

At that moment, Quan appeared. Her dark eyes took in the entire scene, and she could immediately tell what was going on Behind her was . . . someone else. Someone with black and white hair. Momiji blinked. He certainly wasn't the ox whom he had talked to on his first day in the cage. Unless, it was . . . no, it certainly couldn't be . . .

"H-Haru?" he stammered. "What are you doing here?" Haru stared at him. He was shocked at Momiji's appearance – he seemed so tired and weak. The head must have done this to him – he was the one who had Momiji locked inside this place in the first place. His eyes narrowed, his fists clenched, and he took a step towards the head.

Both Haru and the head glared at each other. "You're a monster, you know that? Treating him like this!" Black Haru yelled. "You don't have the right to treat him like this, and you also don't have the right to turn us away like that! You're keeping a member of our family without our permission; don't you think we have the right to try to get him out?" He stalked over to the head and grabbed his collar. Haru was actually a head taller than him, so he was far more intimidating. "We want to negotiate with you. By the end of this week, if we don't get to do so, we will go for the police. This is a case of common kidnapping, and you can get charged for that. If you don't want to go to jail, then set a time to meet, and keep to your promise!"

The head was silent. For the first time, he felt a certain fear and helplessness, and knew that Haru was right. "Fine!" he snapped. "Have your way then!" He gave a growl of frustration, knowing that he was helpless to do anything against it.

"Haru!" Momji whispered. "Please, save Gaia! Before the head changes his mind!"

Momiji stared pleadingly at him. Haru was very close to Momiji, and he knew what Momiji wanted him to do. He flung his arms around Gaia, effectively transforming her into a rabbit. He picked the rabbit off the floor, while Quan grabbed her clothes and handbag, and they both streaked off. Gaia was already struggling in his arms.

Momiji was left alone. Exhaustedly he let his head fall against the bars of his cage. It was smart of Haru – Gaia would certainly have struggled, and in human form, edged with desperation, she would have won. Even if it meant that he would be lonely, at least she wouldn't be hurt. He lifted up his head and looked at the head.

The head glared at him. He did not say anything. What else was there to say? Gaia was gone. He couldn't punish her. Both of them were silent for a while, lost in his own thoughts. Finally, the head turned to one of the guards by his side. "I want him chained."


	24. Chains

Hi! My latest chapter! Read and review, okay? Constructive critisims would be welcome. Flames would be destroyed. You have been warned.

Wow, 91 reviews already! I'm really excited about this, and i really have to thank you guys so much! I'd be really jumping up the walls with joy if i reach the 100 mark. Hint Hint . . .

Well, next chapter would be out soon, so while waiting for it, enjoy this . . .

Thanks, and have fun! Peace out!

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Chapter 24

The head was in a terrible mood, especially after the Hatsuharu fiasco. He still steamed after what Haru told him, but at the same time, he knew Haru was right. They did have the right to go to the police especially if they knew that one of their family members was being held captive, and the police would act on it. He hated the fact that even though he was so powerful, he was still powerless against the law. He couldn't believe that he hadn't even thought of this before he went and imprisoned Momiji.

He had no choice but to back down. Finally, he sent one of his guards to tell the family that they could see him six days later, in the morning, and that it was impossible for them to see him earlier because he was too busy to entertain them. That wasn't exactly true, it was just that he was too furious, and besides, he must salvage whatever pride he had left.

Gaia would be punished, and if he could get his hands on Haru, he would be punished for being so rude to him as well. Momiji would also be punished, for daring to talk to her when he knew that he wasn't allowed to.

However, the only person he did have the power to punish was Momiji. He ordered his guards to chain him down as tightly as they could, and then trash him. They left him an hour later, and just before he left, the head had turned back, and had been gratified to see Momiji kneeling on the floor, his head down, desperately trying to free himself from the chains, but having his efforts prove futile. The chains were far too tight, and were literally scrapping his wrists and ankles raw.

The head watched Momiji struggling for a while, before stalking over and yanking him up by his hair. "Well," he hissed in his face. "You think you can disobey me, but in the end, I win. I'm too powerful for you, especially since you're in my mercy. Poor, foolish little rabbit," he sneered, clenching his fingers into a fist and giving Momiji a mighty punch on the right cheek, where he had already been punched countless times. Momiji had gasped with pain, and his eyes filled with tears, but he still refused to say anything. The head frowned. He hated his subjects being defiant. He simply ordered that Momiji not receive any food until he saw fit, before leaving the room, locking the door behind him.

Six days passed. Shigure and Akito wisely kept away during the six days, until the allotted time they were to see the head. Jung Yin took them to see the head. Haru wanted to come as well, as did Kyo and Yuki, but Shigure refused to let them. "Too many people would make the head feel intimidated, and he'd be even less forthcoming. And besides, Haru, he's probably still mad at you."

Gaia was not present. She was in her room, sobbing over what Momiji had to go through because of her, and how it was all her fault. Tohru was kneeling next to her, trying to comfort her.

Quan asked Natsu whether he could be kind enough to buy the groceries, and Kyo had decided to accompany him. He didn't want to be left in the room with Yuki and Haru, the world's best friends, and besides, Tohru was busy with Gaia anyway, and he wasn't too comfortable with Quan.

Haru decided to take back Momiji's stuff from his apartment because the owner was probably really pissed off by now. Yuki went with Haru so that Haru would not end up lost. Everybody knew Haru was directionally disinclined, especially when he got lost in the house on the third day they were there. Shigure had teased Haru but quickly backed away when he saw Black emerging.

In the meantime, Jung Yin was leading Shigure and Akito into the main compound. Both of them were very impressed with the compound, since it was so big and grand. The Sohma compound had been just as grand, but at least it was more homely these days. This compound had an aura of coldness, and Akito had shivered, not really liking it.

The main house came into view then, and it was slightly bigger than the Sohma main house. It also looked more impressive, but it also had the same coldness. Both Shigure and Akito found themselves preferring their own home. It was smaller, but much more cosy at least.

Jung Yin stopped just outside the main house doors. "Please, wait here," he whispered. "I'll tell the head that you're here, and then come out to get you."

Shigure thanked him and Akito nodded to him. He slipped into the house. Akito seemed rather distracted. She was gazing in the direction of the cat house, where she knew Momiji was being kept. After seeing what happened to kyo, she knew that it was imperative that Momiji be taken out as soon as possible.

She also couldn't help feeling nervous. She did not really want to meet the head, even though she knew that she would be of use in the negotiations. However, seeing someone else acting the way she used to be, would that bring about a whole host of unwanted memories?

Shigure seemed to sense that she was nervous, so he reached out and took her hand. Or perhaps, he too was nervous, and holding her hand would comfort him? Either way, both were still holding hands when Jung Yin returned, followed by a guard.

The guard motioned them to follow, and walked into the house. Shigure and Akito followed him inside, while Jung Yin waited for them. The house was rather cool, but mainly because it was so dark. There were lights in the house, but they were not turned on, and so the only lights came from the open windows. This made the house seem rather eerie and unwelcoming. Both Shigure and Akito already knew that they were unwelcome, and the whole house itself, as well as the silent guard, seemed to make it more obvious.

The guard stopped and opened a door at the end of the corridor, and motioned them to enter. He bade them kneel down in front of a table. The large, intricately designed glass bowl at the centre of the table was full of fruit, but both of them, were not keen to try eating anything. Besides, they just had breakfast anyway.

The guard left, and a few seconds later, he returned with a young man. He seemed to be in his early twenties, but he had such an aura of malice, they knew immediately that he was the head. He knelt down in front of them, and bade the guard to fetch tea for three.

He had a frown on his face as he studied his guests. Akito noticed that he was angry, but that there seemed to be this sad, lonely look in his eyes. She couldn't help feeling sorry for him, but knew that it was probably because since she had been the zodiac head before, she understood that he could be lonely as well.

The guard came in, set three cups of green tea on the table, and bowed. The head flicked a hand at him, and he silently withdrew. The guests were alone with the head, and both sides studied each other, wondering how to approach the other. Shigure decided to speak first. "Well, I guess you know why we're here."

The head took a long, measured sip of green tea. "No," he said when he finished. "Enlighten me."

At this, Shigure felt a flash of irritation. However, somehow, he managed to keep his cool. "You know, we negotiate, get Momiji out of there? What exactly do you want with him?"

The head scowled. He sat there for a while, thinking of what to say. "He's a nuisance, I have to keep him here otherwise he'll turn my zodiac against me. And besides, if he's kept here, it would ensure Gaia's good behaviour. "He smiled in a patronising way. "You probably won't understand this, but the obedience of my zodiac is very important to me."

"Believe it or not, I actually understand where you're coming from." Akito replied. "I just want to know if there's anything you would like in return for him."

"I want Gaia to return back to my side," the head stated. "If you can somehow convince her to do so, you can have Momiji back. In return, you have to go back to where you belong and never communicate with us again."

Shigure and Akito glanced at each other. It was so easy, but both of them knew that Momiji himself would never agree to this. He would never let Gaia return back to the head because he cared for her too much. Even if it meant he suffered for it, he'd never let Gaia return to the head.

"Is it possible to be able to communicate with Momiji?" Akito asked finally. "We would like to hear his point of view." At least, it'd give them a chance to talk to him, let him know that they were there and they would not leave without him.

The head was about to refuse, but suddenly, he gave a slight smile. "Fine, as you wish." He said. He stood up and motioned for the guard. "Take them to the cat room."

The guard bowed, waved for them to follow, then walked out of the room, and out of the house. Shigure and Akito followed him and the head to the cat house, and watched as he unlocked the door. The guard opened the door and motioned for them to go in. The head stepped in first, before the other two.

The room was quite dim, and at first, they could not see anything. Then, when they got used to the dark, they were able to make out a small shape kneeling at the furthest corner of the room. The thin figure raised his head wearily, and both Shigure and Akito could barely keep from crying out in horror and pity.

Momiji looked terrible. His wrists were chained to the wall, and they were so tight, they were literally cutting into the raw flesh underneath. In addition to that, his yukata was covered with blood. He had lost a lot of weight – he was so thin now. His hair had grown slightly longer as well. However, it was his eyes that hit them the most. They were filled with fear, pain, hunger, and helplessness. His cheeks were swollen from being slapped countless times. He was so weak – the only thing keeping him upright were the chains. One couldn't help wondering how long had it been since he had eaten.

Akito immediately flew over to his side. She wanted him to be his normal, cheerful self instead of having him trembling every time someone reached out to him. He stared back at her, hope filling up those sad eyes. Seeing that, she wanted so much to help him. She turned and glared back at the head. "What have you done to him?" she hissed.

The head shrugged innocently. "I was just punishing him for disobedience."

Shigure wanted so much to smack the head on the side of his face, but luckily, he restrained himself. "Look at him!" he snapped, pointing down at Momiji. "He's so weak, and scared. He's not himself anymore. This is not punishment, this is torture! "

"Well," the head countered. "You still have a chance to get him out of there."

Shigure sighed. The head was right. "He might not like it, though."

The head shrugged again, but did not say anything.

Shigure knelt down so he was eye level with Momiji. "Well . . ." he played nervously with his own yukata. "The head says that you can leave if you want to, but in return for you, he wants to have Gaia back."

Momiji's eyes widened in horror. "No way," he managed to gasp out. "I'm not leaving her with him! He'll hurt her!"

"What makes you think I would?" the head asked calmly.

Momiji glared back at him. "This is the one chance that Gaia can be free! Even if this means that I stay here chained like this for the rest of my life!"

The head's eyes narrowed, and without warning, he gave Momiji a hard slap across the face. It was so loud, the slap echoed around the room. The violence force of the slap actually sent Momiji's head to the side. He remained in that position, gasping in pain, staring dully at the floor. He did not say anything.

To tell the truth, he wanted so much to be out of this room. The chains were literally killing him, along with the hunger. He had not had anything to eat during the past six days, and he had never been allowed to lie down and rest. The only time he ever slept was when he was so exhausted not even the pain and hunger could keep him awake, and this was a very rare occurrence. He was so sick of this. He was so sick of being chained like this, of starving because nobody had fed him, of not having enough sleep, of being beaten bloody by the guards every single day. It had been so easy to agree.

The only thing that kept him from refusing was the fact that Gaia would not be free. If he was freed, she would be forced to return back to the head, and knowing the head, she would be punished for everything she had done ever since she had met him. She would be so miserable. He wanted to make sure that she would be safe. For her, he would be strong. For her, he was willing to live like this for the rest of his life.

"Fine," the head hissed. "Have it your way. Remain like this for the rest of your miserable little life!" he turned back to Shigure and Akito. "Well, you've heard his answer," he snapped. "Now leave, and don't bother us anymore!"


	25. Mei

Yo, whassup! My latest chapter! Really hope you guys like it!

Thanks for your reviews! I'm almost reaching 100, so i'm so excited! Keep reviewing, okay? I really look forward to getting reviews, it means that my story is being read . . . i'm so happy . . .

Well . . . hope you guys like this chapter. See yah soon!

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Chapter 25

In the meantime, Natsu was showing Kyo around the neighbourhood. "The market is just around the corner. It's not air-conditioned, and it stinks of fish, but the groceries there are very fresh. That's why we prefer to go there rather than those supermarkets."

"Oh," Kyo replied, hands in pockets, staring interestedly around at his surroundings. "It's a nice place, and besides, I still love the smell of fish."

Natsu smiled. "Me too. Is it because we're cats?"

Kyo smiled back. "I guess so."

The marketplace was quite noisy, with hawkers loudly yelling out their wears. It was all in Korean, so Kyo had no idea what was being yelled. Natsu, however, seemed to know exactly what to do. He knew how to pick out the best groceries, and how to bargain for them. It was quite interesting to watch.

Most of the people there turned to look at Kyo and Natsu as they walked past. They thought it was quite interesting that they should see two people with exactly the same coloured hair, and wondered if they were related. Kyo realised that he was being the subject of so many stares. He turned red with embarrassment and muttered under his breath that he felt as if he was the star attraction in the zoo.

It was with some relief that they finally left the marketplace. Kyo was helping Natsu carry some of the stuff. He was gazing around interestedly while Natsu was thinking about what to say next.

There were so many questions Natsu wanted to ask Kyo, mainly about the cage. How had he managed to survive twelve years of it? It would be important to know, because two years later, Natsu was due to go into the cage himself, and he had no idea how long would he be in there.

However, he didn't dare to ask Kyo. He didn't want to bring back those terrible memories to him, and have him remember them. Just for the sake of helping someone as unworthy as the cat. Oh wait, Kyo was a cat as well . . . would he mind?

Suddenly, Kyo himself spoke. "Who's that?" he asked Natsu.

"Huh?" Natsu looked up, stunned. "Who?"

Kyo pointed, and Natsu caught his breath. Up front, he caught a glimpse of long black hair, bound in a long plat, just leaving their house. The girl herself turned around, and she blushed the moment she saw them. She walked back to them and stared up at Kyo. "Is he the cat?" she asked.

Kyo turned red and mumbled angrily under his breath about how obvious that was.

Natsu himself blushed. "Hi," he said. "This is Mei," he said to Kyo. "She's the dragon. She's fifteen this year." He wanted to add something more, but he decided against it.

"Pleased to meet you," Mei said politely, looking up at Kyo.

"Uh . . . hi," Kyo said to her, sounding rather awkward. He felt rather stupid. For heaven's sake, he had only been out of the cage for one year, three quarters of it being spent in bed recovering, and now he was expected to socialise when he still had not yet remembered how to? He felt like a stupid teenager again, even though he was supposed to be thirty.

Mei turned to Natsu. "I was going to your house to visit, but you weren't in . . ."

"Well . . . we were just out to buy groceries but we're going back in now. Want to come in?" Natsu asked cheerfully, desperately trying not to blush.

Mei smiled. "Okay."

Soon, they were back at the house. Kyo and Tohru had retired to the kitchen to put away the groceries, leaving both Natsu and Mei together. Mei had instantly made friends with Tohru, and Natsu couldn't help feeling a little jealous. She was already starting to call Tohru 'big sister'. Haru and Yuki were not back yet. Neither were Shigure, Akito and Jung Yin. Quan and Gaia were still talking in their room.

"So . . ." Natsu cleared his throat awkwardly. "Um . . ."

She stared down at her hands. "The head tried to use me to erase brother Momiji's memories, but it didn't work because he was the rabbit too. I felt guilty about it, so I was wondering whether I could be of help."

"Of course you can," Natsu replied immediately. "Things are a bit messed up at the moment so we're not sure what to do, but we need all the help we can get."

"Thank you," Mei told him. "I'll do the best I can to help."

There was an awkward silence between them. Both kids were blushing, and Natsu was just about to break the silence when the door burst open.

"Ah, young love," Shigure remarked with a cheeky smile. Behind him followed Akito and Jung Yin. Neither of them looked very happy.

"You're such a bloody hentai," Kyo snapped at him. "How did the thing go, anyway?"

Shigure sighed, and now he didn't look happy as well. "Not good," he replied. "The head was not very forthcoming. He said that he would let Momiji go only if he got Gaia back. However, when Momiji heard this, he refused. Then, the head chased us off and we came back here."

"So now what?" Kyo demanded. "Are we just going to leave him there like that?"

"We'll think of something," Shigure said lightly, desperately trying to lighten up the mood. "We're all smart people, I'm sure. Besides, there's no way that we'd leave without Momiji."

At that moment, Natsu stood up. "Sir," he ventured timidly. "Mei wants to know how she can be off help."

"I think," Akito began. "The best thing we can do is to try to feed him. He looks like he's not being fed well. Is it possible to sneak food to him? At least it'd keep him properly fed until we can think of what to do next."

"Oh yes, I can do that," Mei said immediately. "I'll find a way to do it!"

"I don't want you to get into trouble," Natsu muttered.

Mei squeezed his hand. "I won't get into trouble," she assured him.

"Okay, great," Shigure sighed with relief. "Then in the meantime, we just plan what to do next. The head doesn't have to know that we're still in Korea."

Mei stood up shyly. "Um . . . I have to go now, but I'll make sure that he eats three times a day." The head was so suspicious these days, if you went out for one second, he'd immediately think you were against him, and you'd end up having to face a Spanish Inquisition of some sort, in addition to being grounded or if you were very unluckily or rude, beaten. She had sneaked out, and hopefully, the head hadn't noticed, or won't notice when she sneaked back in.

Offering to help wasn't the only reason why she wanted to risk getting caught by the head.

"I'll walk you out," Natsu said quickly. They left quickly, amid grateful thanks that got them both embarrassed.

"So what do we do now?" Kyo asked.

"I think we should wait until everybody gets back," Shigure replied. "I'm hungry! Tohru! When's lunch!"

"Don't treat her like she's your maid!" Kyo yelled at him.

It was over lunch that they could finally have their discussion. This time, Gaia could join them because she had finally recovered. She was so nervous; she was playing with her food, barely able to eat anything.

Tohru smiled across at her. "You should eat, Momiji-kun would be really upset to see you starving yourself," she pointed out.

Gaia smiled back at her and began eating. She wasn't really that hungry though, but at least she had food in front of her.

Akito said, "I would like to talk to the other zodiac members."

Quan frowned. "I'm not sure if you're able to do that. To do that, you'd have to sneak into the family compound. They never leave the compound."

"You mean they don't have any freedom?" Yuki demanded. "That's really terrible!"

"It's their choice," Gaia countered. "They had decided that they wanted to remain in the compound because they don't want to meet anybody from the outside. They say that that way, they won't be able to get hurt." She smiled reflectively. "I wasn't like that, I was too independent, and I guess I like music and teaching too much."

"Fine then," Akito said, decisively. "Afterwards, I'll go into the compound to talk to them."

Shigure gasped at her. "It's too dangerous," he warned her. "They might catch you. I'll be so worried for you . . . at least let me come with you."

Akito shook her head. "No, It's too risky. It's much harder for two people to sneak around. I would much rather go on my own."

"But you'll get caught!" Shigure countered. "Look, I really don't want you to get into trouble."

Things seemed to be at a deadlock. Akito looked down at her food. She seemed to be thinking hard. Shigure sighed. He knew that Akito could be really stubborn at times, but that was one of the reasons why he loved her so much. If only there were some way to guarantee that she would not be hurt.

"None of us know where the others live anyway," Quan interjected. "At least, wait until a chance comes up. One of them might actually just turn up at our doorstep."

"What about Mei?" Shigure asked. "Shouldn't she know where the others live?"

"She lives in the main house," Gaia answered. "She has no idea where the others live, because the head doesn't want her communicating with the other zodiacs. I'm not sure why, but that's the way things are."

"Poor thing," Tohru murmured sympathetically. "She really must be lonely then."

"Yeah, she is," Quan replied, sadly. "I did try to ask the head to let her live with me but he flew into such a rage that I didn't dare to ask anymore. However, one day, I guess the other zodiacs would turn up here, and we'd be able to communicate with them."

In the end, the others had to agree. It was quite true anyway. Back in Japan, the Japanese zodiac also had this tendency to pop out of nowhere, and some of them ended up wandering to their house. Kyo had broken the roof to get in, Haru had brought Kisa had been found there, and Ritsu had turned up right out of the blue. So many of them had just suddenly appeared, perhaps the zodiac here would do the same thing.

"Alright," Akito said finally. "I'll wait for another week. If none of the other zodiacs show up, I'll go there on my own."

The only thing the others could do was to hope that someone would indeed turn up.


	26. Giving

**Hi guys, my latest chapter! Hope you guys like it! **

**Thanks for all your reviews! It really means a lot to me! I'm glad you like the story, and i really hope that you guys would continue to like it.**

**Yay, i've reached one hundred reviews! I'm so happy, i think i'm going to go out and celebrate somehow! Oh wait, i don't have a life. Oh well! My life revolves around studies and fanfiction and fruits basket, so yeah. Oh well, i know how i can celebrate - by writing more stories! Hehe!**

**By the way, i've just finished a oneshot about Machi Kuragi, but i haven't finished editing it yet. Should be out soon, hope you enjoy it! Besides this oneshot, i also have another on Momiji, so you should check that out as well. I'm in the middle of writing chapter 27 for this story, so it should be out in about six days time. Til then, enjoy my Machi oneshot!**

**Now, to reply to my reviews . . .**

**To Haschen: Hi! Thanks for your review! Really glad you liked it! Sorry to say, Natsu and Mei would be the last coupling from South Korea. However, when the other Sohmas besides the ones in South Korea appear, they will have their own couplings as well. However, the main couplings in this story would still be MomijiXGaia and ShigureXAkito.**

**To JennyKim319: I would never write Akito as a villian, no! I love her too much, she's my favourite character! If i have to write something about her being bad, i wouldn't write something about her being purely bad, i'd have some angst about her as well, and how unhappy she'd be about things and so on. Akii's human, after all. I also can't stand stories where she's a male or purely bad, or even worse, both!**

**To MeiLei378: Hi! Aw, i'm so touched! Thanks for supporting this fic since the begining! Well . . . i'm already past the half mark for this story so yeah . . . enjoy it while it lasts! Don't worry, i won't dream of abandoning this fic, no way! I really mean it!**

**To FlyingFleshEater: Oh well, it's okay! I understand, i'm still in school as well. But thanks, though, for taking time to review this fic! I'm so honoured - thanks so much!**

**Oh well, enjoy this chapter, folks! Till then, see yah!**

Chapter 26

After the meal, everybody dispersed to do their own things. Haru and Yuki decided to explore the city, so they took their leave. Kyo and Tohru went to do the dishes, and Natsu and Jung Yin went off to do their homework. Jung Yin was dyslexic, and since Natsu was a few years older, Quan had asked Natsu to help Jung Yin. However, Jung Yin did not want to receive help from the cat, and Natsu had refused vehemently to help the rat. Hence, it was Quan who was helping Jung Yin with his homework. Haru and Yuki looked though Momiji's stuff to make sure that all were intact, and were confronted with a multitude of rabbits. It was just so funny – both of them just had to laugh. At least it was something light rather than all that tension over the last few days. Once again, even though Momiji wasn't there, he was still comforting them. This was so like Momiji, really. Momiji had been there so many times to comfort them, and now they were not able to reciprocate when he needed it the most.

The owner hadn't been as angry as they thought. In fact, he seemed more concerned for Momiji than angry. He had actually invited them in for tea and asked them if they had any news for Momiji. They were worried that they'd end up saying too much, so they just told him that Momiji went missing and that they were here to search for him.

The owner had been really helpful; he helped them gather his stuff, and never even charged them for the extra days. Yuki and Haru thanked him and took their leave, then lugged his stuff home. Haru carried two of the bags, while Yuki carried the last one and the map.

All in all, it was a bit awkward, but at least it went okay.

After that, they went down for dinner, and decided after that to explore the city. None of them had been out of Japan before, and they decided that they wanted to take photos so they could bring them back to show Rin, Machi and the children.

Both were still rather worried about Momiji, because as usual, Shigure had not told them everything. He had only said that negotiations had failed and that he had been to see Momiji, but nothing else. Definitely nothing on how Momiji was doing, which was the one thing they wanted to know. Right then and there, Haru had just been about to ask Shigure how Momiji had been, but Gaia was there, and Yuki ended up kicking him under the table and frowning at him to keep him silent.

After the meal, Shigure went to his room and locked the door, so they couldn't ask him. However, he did come out after they left.

The other alternative was to ask Akito, but most likely Akito would take Shigure's stand and not say anything either. Besides, it was a bit awkward talking to Akito anyway. She had changed a lot since the curse ended but still . . .

In the end, they had given up and reasoned that Shigure and Akito knew what they were doing by not mentioning it, and they left it at that. Seesh, Shigure had always been like this, even with the curse still in their lives, and they knew that the only thing they could do was to wait. If Shigure wanted to hold his silence, nothing could get him to shake that silence.

Gaia felt restless. Quan was still helping Jung Yin with his homework, so she sat at the table and picked up something to read. However, her eyes could barely focus on the content of those pages. She had been really worried about Momiji, because she knew that the head would definitely punish him for what happened six days ago, and she was so worried about him. How had the head punished him? That was the one thing she wanted to know. She never dared to go back there anymore, and she knew that she shouldn't have in the first place. It just never occurred to her that Momiji would be punished. She had just thought that they could have a quick chat, she feed him a little; comfort him before leaving so that she wouldn't get caught. Obviously, it didn't end that way.

If his pain had been increased, it would be all her fault. How could she be so dumb as to endanger both of them?

She had wanted to stay, to try to bargain with the head, but both Quan and Haru had forced her off. Haru had even turned her into a rabbit! However, try as she might, she couldn't blame them. Most likely, they were concerned for her, and did what they had to do. And besides, Haru had managed to get the negotiations going, though from what Shigure had said, it was a wasted effort.

Restlessly, she walked out of the room and went down the stairs. She knew that Quan had kept some carrots in the fridge and she decided to cut some and eat them with some avocado dip. She did love carrots, it was her favourite food. It was the same with Natsu's fish and Jung Yin's cheese. She wondered if Momiji liked carrots as well.

If nothing else, at least chopping the carrots would calm her down and eradicate her hunger pains.

She walked into the kitchen, and was quite surprised to see Shigure at the table, reading the newspaper. He looked up the moment she came in, winked cheekily at her, and continued reading again.

Gaia smiled back at him, took the carrots, knife and chopping board and began chopping carrots.

Oh wait, Shigure had been there. Shigure had said that he had seen Momiji. She was so worried, she had to know. She really had no idea what to do, but at least, if she heard something about Momiji, she would be able to act on it.

Nervously, she knelt down opposite Shigure and played with her skirt, wondering exactly what she should say.

Shigure looked up at her. "You look like you want to ask me something. What is it?"

Gaia played nervously with her skirt. "You said over lunch that you had been to see Momiji. How is he? Please, is he okay? Has he been hurt?"

Shigure stared down at his paper. There was no way he could tell Gaia about Momiji's condition. It would just kill her. He wondered what he should say next. Should he feign ignorance? Lie and tell her that Momiji was fine?

The second option was more feastable, but thinking about Momiji's condition himself, he couldn't bear to do so. So, now what?

Gaia interpreted Shigure's silence as bad news. "It's bad, isn't it? Please, you have to tell me. I'm really worried about Momiji, and I really need to know how he is."

Shigure sighed. "Well . . ." He pondered for a while, thinking desperately of how he could make things seem better. "Momiji's really weak," He said finally. "He's not being fed well, so we're getting Mei to try to smuggle food to him. You know Mei, don't you?" He just couldn't bear to mention the beatings and the chains. He just couldn't. Momiji himself wouldn't want her to know about that anyway.

Gaia nodded numbly. She knew Mei. Mei was a really nice girl, and once, Mei had even confided in her that she had a crush on Natsu, and she asked her whether she could find out whether Natsu felt the same for her. Mei had also been very reluctant to erase Momiji's memories.

Poor Mei, saddled with a power that she really did not want. Sure, she could erase other people's memories, but what about her own? She remembered Momiji's story, about how the Japanese dragon . . . Hatori or something . . . had erased Momiji's mother's memories of him, and effectively stripping him away from his family, and forcing him to live on his own, watching his own parents caring for his younger sister, who did not even know that she was his younger sister. She just thought of Momiji as a very close friend.

Seeing how Momiji was hurt, would this Hatori person be able to cope with the pain of hurting Momiji?

The same thing happened with Jung Yin, and it had eaten Mei up ever since, knowing that she had destroyed a close-knit family. Maybe that was why she felt so unworthy of Natsu's affections. All she ever did was hurt people, and she really didn't want to hurt Natsu.

As for Natsu, he was convinced that since he was going into the cage, he'd only hurt Mei if she really loved him. In the cage, he'd only have the head for company – nobody else would be allowed to see him. Hence, these two were living in denial, desperately trying to get rid of their feelings for each other so that they wouldn't hurt each other.

This family was really screwed up, with all these deep seated issues. Could the ex-cursed of the Japanese zodiac really help them?

"Yes," she said finally. "I do know Mei," she said finally. "I'm very close to her, and I do thank her for wanting to help us."

"That's great," Shigure said enthusiastically. "Um . . ."

"Yes?" Gaia asked uneasily.

Shigure put the newspaper down and looked seriously at her. "Momiji . . . he really loves you. He would rather be locked inside that room for the rest of his life rather than have you forced back to the head." He paused for a while. Gaia nervously held her breath. "The thing is, Momiji really needs your strength. He needs to know that you'd be there for him. Momiji is really going through a lot right now, and knowing that you are there for him, he'd be able to cope better against . . . what he is going though."

Gaia nodded breathlessly. She mumbled her thanks to Shigure before jumping up and fleeing the room. She felt so horrible – knowing that Momiji was going through so much just because he wanted her safe. The tears were threatening to fall, and she really couldn't have Shigure seeing her tears.

Gaia went back to her room and picked up a little object wrapped in yellow wrapping paper. It was Momiji's birthday today, and the day before, she had gone to the gift store and bought him a soft toy rabbit. It was hand-sized and yellow in colour, and the moment she saw it, she knew she just had to give it to him for his birthday.

How on earth was she supposed to give it to him? She couldn't go into the family compound and give it to him personally, because once, she tried to communicate with him and look what came out of it.

She bit her lip. She really missed Momiji so much. She had to be strong for him, but she just didn't know how. She had had enough of just sitting around and waiting for results. She wanted to help him herself, find some way to do so. She felt so useless, just sitting around waiting for results. He was going through so much just because he really cared for her.

If Momiji was going though so much just because he cared for her, then shouldn't she try to get him out at least? She owned him this much, so that he would not have to suffer anymore for her sake. However, she wasn't sure what she should do next? She herself didn't know where the other zodiacs lived so she couldn't take Akito there. The head refused to let his zodiac communicate with each other. They were scattered all over the compound, and only the head knew where all of them lived.

Forget about asking the head, he certainly wouldn't tell her. He'd probably destroy her instead.

Maybe the ox knew where the others lived. He really was sneaky, and nobody could tell what on earth he was thinking about. He must have somehow found out where the others lived. However, she had no idea where he lived, so how on earth was she supposed to get information from him when she didn't even know where he lived.

At least, if she couldn't do anything, at least she could try to give Momiji the rabbit. She had to give it to him on his birthday itself, since it was his birthday, and it'd really comfort him to receive something for his birthday, even if he was forced to be in a cage. She felt so sad for him. It was his birthday, it was supposed to be a special day for him, and he was supposed to be happy on that day. Instead, he was locked in a cage, cold and hungry, without even a special birthday treat to look forward to. He really must be feeling terrible.

Thank heavens for Mei. She had already volunteered to feed Momiji, so at least he wouldn't be so hungry.

Mei! Oh wait, Mei had promised to feed Momiji, and to do so, she would have to communicate with him. Maybe, she could even ask Mei to give the rabbit to him. Then, at least Momiji would receive something special on his birthday, and he'd know that despite everything, she cared for him as much as he cared for her.

Her eyes narrowed with determination. She was going to give the rabbit to Mei and ask her to give it to Momiji, even if it meant that she ran the risk of being caught in the main compound once again. She really loved him, and she knew that. She was ready to risk everything just to ensure that she could help him.

Decisively, she picked up the rabbit, slipped it into her handbag, grabbed her coat and walked out of the house.

To her intense relief, nothing bad happened. In fact, she was lucky enough to corner Mei right outside the compound itself. Mei had been sent out to collect medication for the head, since he was of a fragile disposition, and Mei had just gotten back. Gaia told her about the rabbit, and asked if it was possible to be able to give it to Momiji, today preferably.

"Okay," Mei replied. "I'll be feeding him later, so I should be able to give it to him then."

"Thank you," Gaia patted her shoulder affectionately. "Both you and Natsu are so similar, the two of you really deserve each other." She smiled at her and quickly slipped away.

Mei remained there, stunned, a huge blush spreading across her face. She wanted to dance with joy. If only Natsu liked her as much as she liked him, if only she could be assured that she would not end up hurting him, how happy she would be!

Her face as red as a tomato, she gathered up her things and went back to the main house.


	27. Encouragement

**Hi guys, my latest chapter! I really am sorry that this had been delayed for so long. I've been really tired lately, and i have no idea why. It's as if everyday has been a perpetual headache. I'm still feeling sick today, but i managed to get this completed and uploaded because i really loved the story and wanted it to continue! Besides, i really didn't want to let you guys down so yeah . . .**

**Oh well, at least, this is up. Please read and reply, okay? I really hope you guys like this!**

Chapter 27

The ox was deep in thought as he strode through the compound. To tell the truth, he wasn't really sure what to do now. These days, the head was so paranoid; he literally jumped on any zodiac he saw loitering around and demanded to know what they were thinking, as if they were thinking of how they could get rid of him. Communicating with the head these days was so nerve-wreaking; nobody knew what the head was going to do next these days.

He was so deep in thought, he had no idea where he was going, and hence, he bumped into someone. He blinked in surprise when he realised that the girl he had bumped into was Mei. Normally, he never really saw Mei since she lived in the main house but here she was now, staring wide-eyed up at him. He glanced behind her, and saw that the cat house was directly behind her.

"What on earth were you doing?" He asked her.

Mei turned red. "Um . . . nothing," she said quickly.

Contrary to popular belief, oxen were not stupid. However, he preferred that people considered him stupid. It meant that they thought he was too stupid to plan anything, so if anything happened, they would not even bother to consider him a suspect. Hence, he preferred to act stupid for the benefit of others.

However, there was one thing about him – he was directionally disinclined. He ended up having to have people lead him around because he kept getting lost. When he was younger, sometimes he would take days to reach his school from his house.

Of course, things were better now because at least if he was lost he'd call one of the guards and get him to lead him there, though at the expense of a few degrading remarks. Oh well, at least he got to where he wanted. Within a day.

He looked back at Mei and raised an eyebrow at her. "Then what are you doing at the cat house?"

Mei stared down at the ground. "I-was just walking around."

"With a bowl?"

"I – was eating something." She sounded flustered now.

"How's he, by the way?" he nodded towards the cat room. Mei stared up at him, wide-eyed. "Well, I am quite concerned about him."

Mei stared at the ground. He could tell that she was thinking about whether to tell him anything. She didn't really trust him. As a matter of fact, she didn't trust any of the other zodiacs with the exception of Natsu, Quan, and Gaia. She never really knew the other zodiacs, so how was she able to trust them?

Actually, she had just been in to see Momiji. She was lucky – the head had actually sent her there to release him from the wall. His wrists and ankles were still chained, of course, but at least it was to the little ring at the centre of the room, and he could lie down. Along the way, she was also able to sneak in some food – a bowl of porridge with some chicken and vegetables. He had been really grateful for the food, as well as finally being able to lie down.

He had fallen asleep the moment his head touched the floor. Mei knelt there, staring down at him. He looked so exhausted; he had barely slept during the last six days. Oh well, at least he could rest now. Gently, she placed the present into his yukata sleeve, and slipped out of the room, locking the door behind her. What was the use of locking the door anyway, since he was chained down and could hardly move more than a little from the ring, much less, walk out of the door. She still had to, though, because most likely if the head found the door unlocked, Momiji would really get it.

She hoped that he would like the present.

"He's fine," she said, shortly. "He's just really tired and needs to rest, so don't wake him up."

"I was just asking," he replied. "I have no intention of going inside there anyway without the head's permission. You know how he is, these days."

"Yes, I should know," she replied. "I live with him, remember? Well . . . I guess I should go, we'd both be in trouble if he finds us talking."

"Wait, one more thing," he blurted out before she could walk away. Surprised, she turned back and looked at him. "Um . . . would you want the curse to be over?"

Mei just gasped at him. The curse being over – it was the one thing she really wanted. She could finally tell Natsu what she thought of him, they could actually have a chance to have a relationship. What would she give to end the curse! "Yes," she said finally, trying to ease the trembling out of her voice. "What can we do to end the curse? Can it really be ended?" she sounded so eager, she now realised. Perhaps, she had given too much away, and it was all over.

The ox turned away and stared into the distance. "I'm not sure how the curse would end. That's why I want to see the Japanese zodiac. I want to know how they were able to end their curse, so that we'd be able to end ours. Gaia wants the curse over as well, as much as you, because it is probably the only way to get Momiji out of the cage."

"What about you, then?" Mei demanded. "Do you want the curse to be over as well?"

He sighed. "Yes, I want it badly enough to do everything possible even at the expense of getting into trouble with the head, to end the curse."

"Why?" she asked.

He turned back to give a slight smile. "I want to be free, to be able to do what I really want to do, to be able to love without getting hurt, to be human. And yes, there is this girl whom I would love to ask out if only I weren't cursed. I want this badly enough, that I'm even willing to go against the head. What about you? Would you be willing to go against the head if it meant that the curse would end?"

Mei was silent, thinking of what he said. An image of Natsu rose in her mind. For him, yes, she would be willing to go against the head. He would be confined in two years time, and she wanted to prevent that as much as possible. If it meant that she had to go against the head, why yes, she would be willing to do so.

"I thought so," he said. Mei stared up at him, stunned. How did he know what she was thinking? "Don't worry, I won't tell the head what we shared today. If the entire zodiac were go against the head, maybe the curse would end. I just want to confirm things with the Japanese zodiac before I talk to everybody. Well, I guess we better go now. I'll get back to you later. See yah . . ." he waved before walking away.

"Wait!" Mei ran forward and grabbed his shirt sleeve. "Where did you hear of that?"

The ox looked up at the sky. "I've been reading," he replied. "Last year, I was in the library, looking up the curse. The family library, mind you. Then, I read this story recorded by one of the ancient zodiac members, the dragon, or seahorse, whichever you prefer." Mei flushed – she hated the fact that she had to turn into a seahorse. "Well . . . the dragon said that the curse almost ended once, because all the zodiacs were already against the head – they even said so in the head's face. However, the rat refused to say anything, and the curse remained. All of them could feel it – the curse slowly slipping away – and then slamming back into them with full force."

Mei's eyes widened. "But why? Why did the rat . . ."

"Well . . . I'm not that sure," he replied. "However, from sources also dating back to that time, it's been implied that the rat really loved the head because the head treated him so well. Needless to say, everybody hated him after that, and the head was so furious, he had the entire zodiac, with the exception of the rat, locked up inside their houses."

Mei nodded silently – it really was sad. Then suddenly, something struck her. "Erm . . . that means that you actually have to tell the head in his face that you were against him? All of us? One after the other?"

The ox sighed. "Yes, and that's the hardest part of all. I really have no idea what the other zodiacs are thinking, so I have to talk to them, and ask if they are willing to do so. True, the risks are great, but the benefits are greater. Oh well, let's just both think about this. If you end up bumping into one of the other zodiacs, talk to them about their relationship with the head, but don't tell them about the story I told you. Meanwhile, I'll look for the Japanese zodiac. See you later, I really have to go now," he waved and walked away.

Mei shook her head. She barely knew him. It was the same with all the other zodiac members, none of them were allowed to contact other zodiac members. This was done to discourage future rebellions. At first, it had been effective, except that the head had never expected that another group of zodiacs would come in and spoil everything.

Oh well, if this meant that the curse would finally be broken, she would end up happy anyway. If not . . . well . . . she'd leave, and ask Natsu whether he wanted to come with her. She had already raised this sense of rebellion within her, and it would be a shame if it went to waste.

She turned and walked back to her room. She would think over this further.

It was later that night that Momiji woke up again. He woke up well-rested, and refreshed. It was amazing, how sleep could make someone feel better. He'd make sure that he had more next time. He lifted his hands to brush away his fringe, and flinched in pain – the chains were still there, linking both his wrists together but at least he had some freedom of movement, even if it felt less painful to remain immobile. He really valued his freedom of movement – it had really been torture, being chained tightly against the wall, unable to move for six days.

Something fell out from his sleeve. He blinked in surprise, and reached out for it with both hands. He held it under the moonlight to see what it was. To his surprise, it was rather small, fitting easily into the palm of his hand. The wrapping paper was sprinkled with rabbits of all different colours, and he slowly unwrapped it, not wanting to tear at the wrapping paper.

Then, his face broke into a grin. There, sitting easily on the palm of his hand, was a small, soft toy rabbit. There was only one person who knew how much he loved rabbits, and who knew when his birthday was. A piece of paper was wrapped around one ear, and he slipped it off and opened it. He knew immediately who it was from.

"Dear Momiji," it read. "Happy birthday! Be strong, I'm going to do all I can to get you out of there. I love you! – Gaia."

He held the note and rabbit against his heart as tears streamed down his face. He felt so . . . happy, and light-hearted. Even the pain of his chains seemed dulled. Gaia did love him, she did not want him to remain here, he was important to her, and she was going to try to save him. This was such a rare sensation to him, of being loved. Never in his entire life did he ever feel loved.

This was the best birthday he had ever experienced in his entire life, even though he was locked in a room, hungry, cold, unwashed, beaten and chained. This was the day he found out what it was like to be loved by another person.


	28. Missing

**Hi guys! My latest chapter! Really sorry if i was so slow again, because i was really tired! And, i spent a lot of time practicing for teachers's day since my school band decided to perform. Can you guys guess which instrument i play?**

**Well, hope you guys like this! Turns out that my story might actually end up being novel length. That would be a great accomplishment! Well . . . to me that is . . . Oh, and thanks for all your reviews! I always look forward to them!**

**Well . . . hope you guys like this chapter! Please send reviews! You guys will get cookies with milk for a reward!**

**Well . . . 'til next time, see yah!**

Chapter 28

It took him four days for him to get to Quan's residence. Later on, after he had dinner, he went straight to the main house and began poring over records in the head's library. The library was always locked, but he had made a skeleton key, and so he was able to get in. Also, the head slept in a room all the way across the level, so he wouldn't be able to hear anything that he was doing. However, he was still cautious – he did not want to risk being caught and end up locked up like Momiji.

After pouring through the records, he was able to find out where exactly Quan had been exiled to, and the exact appearance of the house. It was of their property, of course, so it was noted down in the records.

He set out for the house the next day. He had managed to draw out a map of the exact location and how to get there, but he still ended up taking three days to get there, because he had gotten lost, wandering into an unfamiliar neighbourhood. He had no idea where he was, so he kept wondering around, feeling sure that one day, he would end up at the place he wanted to be in. On the third morning, he struck gold.

He had just walked out of an alley way, and suddenly, he found himself in front of a rather familiar house. He pulled out his map, and there it was – the place that he had wanted to go to. However, he had seen this place before. He knew of this place. He had first run into this place when he was in grade school. He had been running away from bullies, and since they were so much bigger and stronger than he was, they managed to chase him all the way from school and into this house. He had managed to jump in through the windows and hide, and the bullies ran past without even knowing he was in the house. He left after a few hours, to make sure that he didn't get caught by the bullies, and ended up reaching home two days later because he got lost on the way and just wandered around until he suddenly found himself outside the main gates.

This house always seemed symbolic of bullies because he always jumped into it when he wanted to escape from bullies.

Suddenly, something crashed into him, sending him flying to the ground. He managed to push the thing off him and sit up to look, and his mouth dropped open. There, on his knees, knelt another man. He looked perfectly ordinary, except that his hair was the same colour as his – black and white. The other ox glared at him, and tried to punch him, only to have his hand grabbed and held back by another man, this time, with grey hair.

"For heavens sake, Haru, will you stop that?" Yuki snapped. "Don't go black and bash up another person in a foreign country!"

Black Haru glared back at him. "Oh? And how about shutting that mouth of yours before I shut it for you . . ."

At that moment, someone reached out and poured a bucket of water out of the window, effectively drenching both Yuki and Haru. This did the trick; Haru was back to white again. An orange head poked out of the window. "There," he said, satisfied. "Now, how about acting your ages?"

"Speak for yourself, you baka . . ." Yuki snapped.

Kyo raised an eyebrow. "Well, at least I wasn't chasing someone around the house simply because that same person accidentally ripped up your shirt in the washing machine."

"Oh?" Haru had been looking around for the person he had bumped into, and his eyes widened when he realised that the person he had bumped into had the same coloured hair as him. "Oh . . ."

The ox was glaring back at him. "Next time, would you please look where you're going?"

"Sorry," Haru apologised sincerely. "Yuki was chasing me through the house and I guess I wasn't really watching where I was going. By the way, is that hair natural?"

"Want me to show you?" the other ox asked in a calm but slightly irritated tone. "I've already had enough of being asked about whether my hair is natural or not." He reached down and started to undo his fly.

Right in the middle of the street!

"Okay, okay, we believe you!" Yuki exclaimed. "Now stop that . . ."

"Look," Kyo sighed in exasperation. "Seems all oxen behave the same way in every country. Why don't you come in? We need to talk to you anyway."

This was exactly what the other ox wanted. "Okay," he said calmly. "Lead the way."

Soon, they were seated around the table. Tohru had tea and snacks set about before them, before sitting next to Kyo. "Wow, I'm so glad to meet you, Mr . . . Mr . . . I'm sorry," she squeaked. "I don't know your name!"

"Jin Seoh, what exactly are you doing here anyway?" Quan asked. "And how did you find your way here, anyway? I thought you never left the family compound. Oh wait, now I remember why – you always get lost."

The ox looked rather embarrassed. He hadn't wanted to give his name because he wanted to see if he could trust them, but Quan had spoilt everything. Also, now that he was right in front of them, he had no idea what to say. He had everything all planned out about what to say, but now, actually seeing them in person, he was so nervous that practically everything flew out of his head.

"Um . . . well . . ." he began.

"Is . . ." Gaia spoke up. "Is it about Momiji? How is he? Has he . . ."

"I don't know," he said. "Haven't seen him yet." Gaia looked crushed.

"Oh . . ." she said finally. "Well . . ."

"If it's any consolation to you," he added, "Mei said that she had been in to see him, and she says that he's being treated better now."

Gaia smiled in relief. "Yes, it does console me. Thanks." It didn't really help that much though. Treated better from what? He had been treated worse before? And, it was all her fault! She had only herself to blame for it. Quan saw tears welling up in her eyes and decided to change the subject.

"So why are you here anyway?" Quan demanded. "Is it to talk to the Japanese zodiac?"

"Well, yes, actually," he admitted. "Since their curse is over, I was wondering whether they would know how it ended. I do have a few theories myself, and I want to know whether I'm correct about them."

"Such as?" Gaia asked eagerly.

He hesitated. "Well . . ." he said finally. "I think I might have a solution to end the curse. It's a bit hard to say at the moment. However, I do know that I need to talk to someone who knows about how the curse ended. I really don't want to tell you now because I might end up creating false hopes."

"Hm . . ." Shigure rubbed his chin. "I think you should talk to Akito about this. She's the only one who really knows about the curse. However . . . what exactly do you want from us? Can we really trust you to tell you what we know? I mean, not that we have anything against you, but I'm afraid the head might do something to you to tell him about what we're planning to do."

"Well . . . to tell the truth . . ." Jin Seoh trailed off, wondering what on earth he was supposed to say next. He knew that they wanted the curse to end, because they wanted to bring Momiji back to Japan, with Gaia if possible. However, to do so . . . "If you're thinking of sneaking in and freeing Momiji, it wouldn't work. The head has the place so closely guarded even ants would not be able to sneak past. In order to get the head to listen to you, you'd have to end the curse." He really was telling the truth – he couldn't think of another alternative, and this piece of information might serve to galvanise the Japanese zodiac into ending the curse. Maybe he was being manipulative, because after all, he was using the Japanese zodiac to end his curse, but what else was there to do? "And besides," he added as an afterthought. "If you end the curse, sister Gaia can hug Momiji without transforming."

"And why are you telling us all this for?" Quan asked. Obviously, she was still suspicious of him.

"Just to help you end the curse, because I really want the curse to end as well," he answered. "And besides, I know you're against the head, so it won't hurt me to tell you this."

"Well . . ." Shigure looked thoughtful. "I'm not too sure, but it's probably because we all turned against the head. I wasn't the head at that time," he added hastily. "It was someone else. However, Akito would know more; you should go and talk to her."

"Where is she?" Jin Seoh asked curiously.

"I'll go and get her," Yuki announced. He stood up and left the room.

"By the way," Quan spoke up. "I've been meaning to ask – was Akito under the curse as well? What animal did she turn into?"

Shigure hesitated. "Well . . . not exactly. It's was . . . well . . ." he had no idea how to put this. He wasn't really sure whether Akito wanted people to know that she used to be the family goddess. He had never even thought to ask her. Stupid, he should have.

Everyone watched him, waiting for his answer.

At that moment, Yuki returned. "I can't find her," he announced. "I looked everywhere in the house, but I really can't find her."

"What?" Shigure looked horrified. "Where could she be?" However, the moment he asked the question, he knew where she was. She had said a few days earlier that she wanted to visit the family compound to talk to the other zodiac members, but the others had managed to convince her not to by telling her that maybe the other zodiacs might turn up on their own violation, and that she should wait for a few days.

A few days had already passed. Did she go on her own?

"Oh great," Shigure mumbled.

"Shall we go and look for her?" Kyo asked.

Shigure nodded distractedly. "Yes, both you and Yuki should go and look for her. If we're lucky, maybe she wouldn't have gone that far."

Kyo's mouth dropped open. Go with . . . Yuki? Okay, maybe their relationship had improved, but they weren't really that close. Both of them would end up driving each other mad.

Yuki glared at him. "Well, you've heard him, baka neko. Even though I'll probably get really irritated with you."

"You damn . . ." Kyo jumped to his feet. "I can go without you, thank you very much." He turned and stormed out of the house. Yuki sighed and followed. Much as he really didn't like the former cat, it was always better to have someone with him when dealing with Akito.

"Eh?" Tohru looked stunned. She looked around, and saw that Jin Seoh was starting to stand up. "You're going so soon?"

He gave her a slight smile. "I guess I better go, the head will be wondering where I am, and he'd kill me if I went missing, especially if he finds out that I came here. Call we when you find her, we could talk some more then." He gave a slight wave, and walked to the front door. Quan decided to accompany him back, declaring that he'd probably get lost again.

Shigure was left alone with Tohru. Tohru saw how worried he was, and her heart went out to him. "Don't worry, she'd be fine," she comforted him. "I'm sure that Kyo and Yuki would be able to find her."

Shigure sighed. "I hope so," he mumbled. "I really hope so." If anything happened to her, he certainly would not forgive himself.


	29. Capture

**Hi guys! My latest chapter! Really hope you guys like it!**

**I was just reading some of the C2s, when i realised that there was one for stories with OCs. I realised that some stories with OCs might actually not be too popular. Well . . . personally, i like OCs who have depth of character, and are quite originally introduced. I would even like stories with Mary sues as long as it is well written.**

**Sometimes, you can't help adding OCs in stories when you really do not want to pair up fruits basket characters with each other. People like Momiji Sohma, Naohito Sakuragi, Kimi Todo, Saki Hanajima and so on . . . personally, i like MomijiXOCs because the stories are so cutely written, and Momiji is such a ball of energy sometimes so they make a cute combination.**

**Oh well, thanks for all your reviews! Hope you guys like my story! Please read and reply, okay? Thanks!**

Chapter 29

After breakfast, Akito decided to go for a walk. It had already been three days, and no other zodiac member had shown up. Patience had never been her forte, and so she decided right there and there that she would look for the other zodiacs. She did feel guilty about making Shigure worry about her, but what was there to do? She really didn't have much of a choice – Shigure would have insisted on going with her, and if she got into trouble, invariably, he would get into trouble as well.

At least if one person went alone, there would be less chance of getting caught. She only hoped that Shigure would understand, and that he wouldn't be too worried about her.

A few minutes later, she reached the family compound. She slipped in before any of the guards could notice, and made a beeline for the bushes to hide behind. Luckily, they never noticed.

She glanced around to make sure that nobody noticed her, before standing up and making her way to the main house, hiding in the shadows when she heard anyone approaching. It really was very nerve-wreaking, knowing that she could be caught any second and that she really had no idea what they would do to her when they caught her.

She only hoped that she would still be able to communicate with Shigure, though what to tell him would be another matter altogether.

In the Sohma compound, the zodiacs stayed in the inner compound, as near to the main house as possible. Some even stayed inside the main house. Maybe here, it would be the same. No head would want to be separated from his or her zodiacs anyway so . . .

At least, that was what she hoped. It had been what she felt, but whether it really was so in this family was another matter altogether.

Soon, she was standing before the main house, in all its grand but frigid glory. A few yards away, in an abandoned part of the compound, lay the cat house, and its one sole occupant. She couldn't help shuddering at the thought – the smell of decay, the barren soil, broken down walls covered with weeds and moss, the cold rough stone and rusty window bars. It must be really cold at night as well. No wonder Natsu so feared the place.

Poor Momiji, being forced to live in these conditions, in addition to being beaten, starved and chained.

Momiji must been even stronger than she had thought – living in these conditions and yet, he had not broken. She really couldn't help admiring him.

At that moment, she heard the sound of footsteps and heavy panting, and then, she felt her arm being grabbed. She spun around and was just about to punch the living daylights out of her unknown assassin when she caught a glimpse of white hair, with black underneath. It wasn't Haru.

"Madam Akito," he said formally. "Shigure is looking for you. He's very worried about you."

She sighed. "I know. I just didn't want to involve him in this, because I don't want him to get into trouble."

"Why are you here in the first place," he asked.

She glanced around. "I'm actually here to talk to the other zodiacs. I need to know their point of view about the head."

"Why?" he asked.

She remained silent, looking down at the ground, playing with her blouse. How much could she trust him with her information? Would he be for or against her? After all, he was one of the other zodiacs, and who knew which side he was on.

Well, at least she had Gaia, Quan, Natsu and Jung Yin on her side, though she knew that she really had no idea what the other nine wanted.

"It's none of your business," she said finally.

Jin Seoh's eyes narrowed. "Hey, this is my business. You're talking about my family here. How would you like it if I came snooping around in your family compound, saying that it was none of your business?"

"Don't forget," she replied, in cool and aloof tones. "A member of my family is being held captive here, and don't you think we have the right to barge in here to get him out since your family business concerning him also concerns ours."

Jin Seoh turned away and looked at the main house. "Someone's coming," he stated. "Come into the shadows." He took her by the elbow and dragged her away, ignoring the glares she directed at him. "There, we're safe now."

Akito wretched her elbow out of his grasp. "What do you want?"

"I want to end the curse," Jin Seoh replied. "And, Shigure told me that you would know more about the curse than him, and so he told me to look for you. Of course, that was before he found out that you had disappeared." Maybe she would end up revealing how she was connected to the curse since it was already known that she did not transform into an animal.

Unless, she could be . . . wait, she couldn't. They had to be male, and she was female.

Then how on earth was she connected to the curse?

Akito stared down at the ground. Yes, of course she knew about the curse. She knew so much that she wished she didn't, because all it did these days was to bring back bad memories of what had transpired. Not for the first time, she really wished she could turn back time. However, what she could do now was to help those who were under the same curse, since now she was in a position to help them.

"Yes," she said finally. "I do know more about the curse than many others. What do you want to know?"

Jin Seoh looked around again. "It's not safe here," he said finally. "Anybody can just come along and see us." He hesitated, wondering if she would be furious with him if she heard his suggestion. Oh well, he might as well say it anyway. "If you like, I can take you to my house. Most likely, we would be safe there."

"Fine," she shrugged. "Lead the way then."

A minute later, they were in his house. Akito waited in his living room while Jin Seoh retired to his kitchen to bring drinks. He lived on his own of course. He looked to be in his late twenties. Momiji had been forced to live on his own as well, but it was at the young, tender age of fifteen since his parents didn't want him. Momiji claimed numerous times that he was used to living on his own and that he didn't mind it, but she couldn't help wondering if he had wetted his pillow sometimes. She couldn't help wondering what Jin Seoh's background was, but it would be really rude to ask him since they didn't really know each other that well. Still, he did have a picture of his parents on his mantle, and they looked quite kind.

At that moment, Jin Seoh entered the room with drinks and snacks. He found her standing, staring at the picture. "Those are my parents," he said quietly. "They live in the outer compound now, but I still visit them regularly." He smiled reflectively. "I moved out because since I was an adult, the head wanted me to move nearer to him."

"It's nice to know that you're close to them," she replied.

Jin Seoh smiled in return as he set the drinks on his table. "Maybe . . ." he replied. "If so . . . I guess. It's just that . . . I guess it didn't matter to me if they loved me. I felt so numb, nothing really mattered to me. I guess that showed how lonely I was, or maybe it was just the curse. I'm just waiting for something that would make me feel again."

Akito stared at him, stunned. "You know," she said finally. "You really sounded like Shigure. He used to be like that as well, but not any more. He was part of the zodiac as well, except that he was of the dog spirit."

"Really?" Jin Seoh asked. Wait a minute, if he was the dog spirit, there was no way he could have been the head during that period of time. "If so, then who was the head at that time then?"

She shrugged, not answering his question. Maybe later . . . she would tell him later. "So what was it you wanted to know?" she asked finally, hoping that it would change the subject.

"Well . . ." he said. "I wanted to know . . . how the zodiacs turned against their head. If so, what made them do so? Is there anyway I can convince the zodiacs in my family to do the same?"

"Well . . ." Akito thought for a minute. She had been there when it ended, and she decided that she might as well add some information that would be beneficial to him. "Well . . . I'm sure that you've met some of the Japanese zodiac. You've met the former cat, Kyo, right? After graduation, the family head at that time had him locked away in the cat house. He stayed there for twelve years, and was only released a year ago. Just when he was about to be locked away, the head forced him to watch his girlfriend, Tohru, have her memories erased. After she was carried out of the estate, the head had him chained, and left in the cat room. Throughout all that time, he had never had his chains removed, and he had never been allowed out."

"That's so sad," Jin Seoh muttered, feeling, to his embarrassment, tears welling up in his eyes. No wonder Kyo looked so weak and sickly. It was even a miracle that he was still walking around. To go on living, even though you had suffered terribly . . . he really had to take his hat off to him.

"Twelve long years passed. Kyo had been physically and emotionally abused by the head and his guards throughout that time. He was in constant pain, both from the chains and from beatings from the guards. He was fed rarely, and when he was fed, it was only with cold, hard scraps discarded by various members of the family. He could not escape, and he knew that he was at the mercy of the head and guards, and the only thing he could do was to desperately grasp at his sanity, and try to endure all the pain and loneliness on his own, since he had nobody to turn to. He also missed Tohru so much, and every single one of his memories of her seemed to tear his heart apart. His only escape was death, and he finally resigned himself to knowing that all his sufferings would finally end when he was dead. He had been reduced to an empty shell, and he had no hope left.

"Meanwhile, Tohru went out into the world. She worked for a while, then went to college, graduated, and became a primary school teacher. She lost contact with the Sohmas she used to know. To all appearances, she was happy and carefree, but inside, she was lonely, tormented by faint wisps of memories that she couldn't seem to catch. All of them were about an orange haired man. Sometimes, she would even cry herself to sleep at night. The head knew of this, and he was pleased to see both the cat and the girl suffering.

"The girl finally decided that she wanted to find out about this orange haired man, and who he was, and if he had any significance in her life. For the next three years, she searched every single city in Japan, but she couldn't find him. However, one day, she bumped into Momiji. Momiji recognised her instantly. Nobody knew whether Momiji had been intentionally seeking her out or had merely bumped into her in a stroke of luck. Whatever the case, he casually mentioned Kyo, and when she asked who he was, Momiji told her everything, and in that same instant, all her memories resurfaced.

"With Momiji, she went back to the main house. Momiji stole the key and they opened the cat room. By that time, Kyo was very weak, hanging on to life by a single thread. However, when he saw them, he seemed to awaken. Tohru wept to see him in such a weakened state and right there and there, she vowed to free him.

"It was at that moment that the head caught them. He was furious, and he summoned the entire zodiac, meaning for them to watch as he punished both the cat and the girl. Right in front of everyone, he began kicking at the girl. Kyo pushed himself up into a kneeling position and disowned the head. The rat, Yuki, stood up and also disowned the head, followed by the rest of the zodiacs. The girl had made a significant impact on all their lives, and none of them wanted to see her get hurt by the head, even up to the extent of going against him. They had been there when her memories were erased, and they knew that Kyo had suffered so much, and that he at least deserved to be with her. It was at that moment that the curse ended, and everybody was happy."

"Even the head?" Jin Seoh asked.

Akito smiled. "Yes, even the head." There were still some parts of the story left, of how she constantly blamed herself for everything, and how Momiji, the supposed air purifier of the Sohmas, later suffered from depression, but those were stories meant for a later date.

Jin Seoh suddenly brightened up. "Wait, I think I have an idea! It's coming to me . . . I'm thinking that maybe, I can use Momiji to end the curse by . . ."

However, what he planned to do, Akito never found out. The door slid open, and both whirled around to see the head smirking down at them, flaked by his guards.


	30. Hostage

**Hai guys! My latest chapter! Really hope you guys like it!**

**Oh, and thanks for all your reviews! I'm always excited to receive them so please also review for this chapter! I'm almost reaching the end of this story - i think about at most ten chapters long, so enjoy this while it lasts!**

**Oh well, next chapter should be out soon so see you then!**

Chapter 30

Needless to say, the head was furious. He recognised her immediately, and seeing her sitting there, talking to his beloved ox, was more than enough to send him into a rage. He was so sure that she was trying to turn his zodiacs against him. If that was the case . . .

"You," he spat. "What the hell are you doing here? I thought I told you to stay of my property and never come back?"

She did not answer, knowing that no matter what she said, it would not allay the head's anger.

The head turned to his guards. "Take her to my chambers. I'll deal with her there."

That was where she was now. The head was nowhere to be seen. The guards had dragged her here, into this dark, windowless room and left her there, before locking the door. She wasn't bound, thank goodness. The room was rather bare, with only a small candle sitting on a low table and a thin futon in the corner. She walked over to the futon and sat cross-legged on it, waiting for the head to come in. There was nothing else to do, but to sit and reflect, and wonder what was in store for her.

One thing she knew though was that the head intended to keep her here for quite a while, at least for a few days. Otherwise she would certainly have been left in the head's room. How long would that be, and would she ever see Shigure ever again?

At least, the guards had been civil to her. All they did was to grasp her by her wrists and bring her to this place. They never said anything, and they didn't attack her.

She felt sleepy. Maybe, she should just sleep for a while. After all, she was tired, and she needed to rest. She needed all her wits when dealing with the head, and if she rested now, she would be refreshed and would be able to think better later. Besides, there was nothing else to do anyway.

Sighing, she lay down on the futon and closed her eyes. She hated sleeping fully clothed, but there was no change of clothes around, so she'd just have to make do with what she had. She certainly wasn't going to sleep naked here, certainly since she had no idea when the head was coming to see her.

Meanwhile, Jin Seoh felt at a loss as to what to do. The head was glaring down at him, and he felt that it would be dangerous to say anything. The head was so unpredictable these days, he had no idea what the head would do to him. It was a very unnerving thought.

The head smirked at him. "What were the two of you talking about?"

"We were talking about Momiji," Jin Seoh said quickly. The only thing he could do now was to pretend that he was on the head's side, and when the head was convinced about this, find a way to tell Shigure of Akito's danger. Shigure deserved to know, whether the head allowed it or not. Even he had morals.

"And what did you say?" the head continued.

Erm . . . "She wanted to free him . . ." However, what he didn't mention was that both of them were planning to break the curse. The head really didn't need to know that. "However, I did tell her that it was impossible because he was so closely guarded."

There was a pause. "I didn't tell her much, if that's what you're wondering," he added. "After all, unlike some people, I wouldn't bite the hand that feeds me."

The head was glaring down at him. "For someone so loyal to me, I'm surprised you even let her into your house! You should have told me that she was here, so I could prepare a 'reception', or brought her to me." He paused. "Obviously, I need to teach you a lesson. The punishment room is being used at the moment, so I'll just lock you here. Rest assured that the moment the room is vacant, you'd be moved in there for as long as a time you deserve." He turned to his guards. "Lock him in this room and make sure that he doesn't escape."

Once he was alone, Jin Seoh sat on his bed and flushed with embarrassment. "Okay, fine, that didn't work," he said aloud to his reflection. "I really am quite dumb sometimes." Out of all the zodiacs, he had been locked in the punishment room the most, and for the longest periods of time as well. The head had obviously meant that this would make him more terrified and loyal to the head, but it only served to make him more rebellious and more determined to end the curse.

He really hoped that the head wouldn't do anything to her, and that she wouldn't think that he was the one who had gotten her into trouble.

Oh well, he might as well think over her words and see how he could create the same circumstances and at the same time, convince the other zodiacs to go against the head. He picked up his phone, and realised that the line had been cut. And, the head had confiscated his hand phone, since he had been stupid enough to leave it on his mantle, in plain sight. Now there was absolutely no way of communicating with anybody.

He sighed, and immediately started thinking of ways to escape, with a quiet desperation of someone who knows that he would really suffer if he didn't.

Suddenly, he realised something. The cat room, another person in love with the one imprisoned in the cage, wasn't it happening again? Momiji had been the one who had brought Tohru in to see Kyo, and by this, get Kyo to disown the head and for everybody else to follow. It could happen again. Gaia could be brought in to communicate with Momiji, and then disown the head, with all the other zodiacs following her example.

Had the whole thing been planned? After all, Akito had seemed to imply that Momiji had planned the whole thing, had been the one to search for the cure, like what Jin Seoh himself was doing now. Momiji seemed to have known what would have happened next, had he thought the whole thing out. What Momiji had done was what Jin Seoh had been doing, and both of them must have known what a risk they were running, on planning things this way.

Jin Seoh had often thought of himself as manipulative, but he didn't think Momiji would be that manipulative as well – he looked so innocent the first time he saw him, and at the same time, looking as if the weight of the world had been on his shoulders . . . Of course, Momiji had been in the cage for one night already.

The ironic thing was that now, Momiji was the one in the cage.

If only there was some way of communicating with Momiji.

She was startle awake when she heard the door unlock and push open. Immediately, she sat up and waited. Sure enough, she saw the head stalk in, and close the door behind him. He indicated for her to kneel before the table and she quickly compiled. To her surprise, he joined her at the table. He glared at her for a while, before saying, "Well, what are you doing here? Didn't I tell you that you'd be punished if you ever set foot in my compound?"

"I did tell you that as long as a member of my family is being held captive here, just because you tell me to stay away does not mean I would actually do it," she replied evenly.

"He made his choice," the head growled. "I told him that he was free to go; only that he was to return my rabbit to me, and he refused to leave. You heard him. You were there, you heard him say that Gaia was free, and that he would rather die than force her to return to me, even if he was tortured like this for the rest of his life."

The head was speaking more to himself now, and Akito knew better than to interrupt him.

He continued, "Gaia was somewhat loose cannon to me. After spending years being kept by her parents, she wanted to be free. And Quan . . . Quan is supposed to be my dog. Mine! She is supposed to be loyal to me, but instead, she chooses to be loyal to her. I'm loosing control over my zodiacs. And now, Momiji has to come into our lives. Bit by bit, by bringing his family, he is tearing away my zodiacs from me. I can sense that there's some sense of rebelliousness forming in my zodiac because of this. I won't stand for it; I won't allow a heathen to break apart my family."

Akito listened to all this in silence. She knew what he was thinking, she had once been thinking the same thing as well, of the way Tohru Honda had barged into their lives and now, because of the way Tohru had turned the zodiac away from her, the curse had ended. Of course, Momiji and Kyo had played a big part in that as well, but it was because of their closeness to Tohru that gave them the courage to end the curse. After that, the rest of the zodiacs had followed their lead.

The funny thing was that Akito herself had expected that once the curse was over, there would not be a reason to live. After all, she had once believed that the bond between the zodiac and her had been the most important thing in her life, and she would rather be bonded closely to her zodiac and die early than live for the rest of her life without the zodiacs. However, when the curse ended, she hadn't expected the freedom, of being able to live independently, of being able to become a woman again, of marrying the person she most wanted to marry. Sure, the pain of loosing the bond was great, but the resulting freedom was even greater.

She realised that the head had stopped talking and was staring at her. "Yes?" she asked, rather uneasily.

The head slammed his fist on the table and stood up, his fists clenched. "Why the hell am I telling you all this in the first place? However, get this into your head. You and your family are to leave this bond alone. You think you know everything that goes on in my mind, but you don't! You won't understand anything! You don't understand that I would rather die than be separated from my zodiacs because without them, life is not worth living."

He stood up and stepped out of the door. Then, he turned back. "You can consider yourself a hostage until I get that stupid husband of yours to promise to leave my family alone. Go back to Japan, or jump of a building for all I care, but leave me and my zodiac alone!" he slammed the door shut and locked it, leaving her alone in the dark, the candle having been blown out from the strength of the door being slammed.


	31. Author's note 2

Author's note:

Hi guys! I'm really sorry, I don't like the way the story is heading at the moment, so I'll be re-writing it. I'll just leave this here until I have the first chapter of my new version out, okay? I guess it shouldn't take too much time . . .

However, I really have to thank all of you for your reviews, and I really hope that you guys will like the new version I come out with.

Till next time, see yah!


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